The Sun Rises in the West
by FebruarySnowFlower
Summary: AU Following the Meiji Restoration many Japanese left their country to seek a new life. The wide open American Frontier seems like the perfect place to start anew, but escaping your past just isn't that simple. OC/Sess Inu/Kag
1. Strangers

So I've been working on writing exercises, and I've found them easier to write as fanfiction. Just practice, and I decided to post this one so that some of my friends can reach it. If you've seen any of my other stories you'll know I have a habit of starting something and not finishing it. I cannot promise that this fic will be any different, however I am going to try my best.

As for this story in particular, it's an Inuyasha AU Western Setting. Why? Because I think it's cool, Inuyasha-Wild West is not explored enough. I can't say I'll do it justice, but dammit I'll try. Using my OC? Also selfishness, but I can't help myself. It's just an exercise, so I feel ok using her. Her being paired with Sesshomaru? More selfishness. If any of these facts deter you from my story, I still hope you give it a try. The point of this is to practice and improve as a writer, so all of your criticisms are appreciated. Compliments will just be an extra bonus.

All right, enough of my blabbing. Let the story begin:

* * *

The sun beat down mercilessly, her long dark hair holding in the desert heat making her miserable, though she dare not move. The sparse thicket outside her cabin provided the most amount of cover out here; she hoped she was completely out of sight as she stared down the barrel of her gun, though there was absolutely no shade. She felt several beads of sweat roll down her back and neck, but she let not a single muscle twitch and she held her place.

Her cabin stuck out like a giant welcome sign against the bleak red landscape, being the only structure for miles, though it looked completely broken-down and abandoned. That was how she found it, and she decided it was in her best interest to keep it looking empty and in disarray; bandits would not be drawn to rob a house that had no wealth.

This is what she hoped as the watched the lone figure on horseback ride towards her home. He must be a scout, she had noticed the caravans in the distance earlier and when she saw one of them headed in her direction she knew that the caravan had noticed her little cabin in the desert as well. If she was lucky, then whoever it was would see that there was nothing here to steal and report it back to their comrades and be on their way.

Then again, they could see that the house abandoned and come to make it their new hideout just as she had. Swallowing she kept her finger steady on the trigger. If she had to she could kill the scout. His companions would hear the gunshot and come after him, but that would give her just enough time to grab her precious cargo and flee. She did not want to, but if it came down to it she would not hesitate.

When the figure was about several yards away he halted his horse and dismounted. It was a man, she could tell that much now, and the coat he wore over his clothes was a bright red. His wide-brimmed hat cast a shadow over his face, though snow-white hair cascaded down his back almost to his knees. As he glanced around his eyes suddenly glinted in the light, appearing to glow a bright gold.

Her eyes widened as she caught her breath. There was one other she knew to have these physical features, someone she hadn't seen in a very long time. Shaking her head slightly, she ducked lower to the ground trying to not get distracted in memories.

One thing was very obvious though, this man was not human. It had taken her a while to understand the physical appearances of Westerners, but this guy wasn't even close. He had to be some sort of spirit, though she was still unfamiliar with those that dwelled in this land. His boots kicked up dirt as he continued to walk towards her cabin. He was certainly dressed in the clothes of western men, but there was no way he was human.

Wait was he…sniffing? The man had stopped and his head stuck out slightly as his nose twitched.

She felt her stomach drop and gulped again. If this guy was anything like the youkai of her homeland then it wouldn't be long before he discovered her location. Quietly she prayed that he wouldn't discover what she kept in the house, her situation looking a little more bleak than before-

His head suddenly snapped in her direction, gold eyes boring right through the thicket as if it weren't even there. He called out to her in English, and though she only caught a few of the words the message was clear: Her hiding spot had failed, he knew she was there.

Paling visibly, she allowed herself one moment of fear before mustering the most fearsome scowl that she could. She was on her feet in an instant, both hands holding her gun as she pointed it right at his chest.

"_Leave_," she commanded, using the little English she knew knowing full well her accent was obvious, "_Go now or I shoot."_

The man looked her over, not seeming intimidated in the slightest, and snorted. He looked away and resumed his sniffing.

Annoyed, her glare deepened. "_I say go! Leave now!" _ When he continued to ignore her temper flared and she switched her aim to his head.

"Oi," the man looked back to her again and responded in Japanese, "wench! Be quiet!"

It had been years since she had heard her native tongue spoken aloud; she had lost count of how many hours she spent longing to hear it once again and be able to converse. She had never dreamed though that when she finally found someone else who could speak it they would address her so rudely.

"Alright then," she snarled, her anger stifling what little joy she had as the familiar words slipped across her tongue effortlessly, "I'll say it like this, go away before I'm forced to blow your head off."

The man glared at her, "I said shut up!"

"No! This is my home, you don't tell me what to do here!"

"I don't care! Look here y-"

The man's eyes widened as the wind suddenly shifted direction, now blowing towards them from the cabin. Nose twitching, his nostrils flared as he took in a scent.

"Bastard," he hissed to himself, before suddenly yelling, "Sesshomaru! I know you're here! Show yourself!"

Her heart stopped. That name, the name of the one person she longed for, more than anything else. Beyond even the language of her home that was one name she had not heard uttered aloud in exactly three years, she had dared not to speak it for fear of being consumed in sorrow. The one person she had tried desperately in vain to push from her mind, knowing if she didn't she would not be able to continue on.

This man. This man knew him, knew her beloved, which could mean only one thing: she had been found. Everything she had worked for the past three years was now ruined. The fact that he was here now calling for Sesshomaru meant that everything she had suffered for was pointless, they knew where she was.

The man took one step towards her cabin. Reacting in fear she pulled the trigger.

While she was never the best shot, after being forced to learn over several years she had grown pretty decent, his skull should have been shattered. But the moment she shot, the man became a blur and her bullet flew off into the distance. In the blink of an eye, clawed hands ripped forward and bent the barrel of her gun upwards at a ninety-degree angle rendering her weapon useless.

"What the hell are you doing?!" The man snarled baring his fangs at her. His hat had blown off in his sudden dash, revealing two snowy dog-ears atop his head. Definitely an inu-youkai.

Before she could respond a wail suddenly erupted from her cabin, and once again turned towards her home. Not knowing what else to do she threw herself in front of him, trying to block his path.

"No! Please! You musn't!"

In a single bound he leaped over her, and before she could even hope to stop him he ripped off the door to her one-room abode. Not a moment later out toddled a small boy, sporting his own snowy locks and gold eyes. A snow-white tail protruded from the base of his spine, pointed ears poked out from the sides of his head, and at the center of his forehead was a blue crescent moon.

"Mama!" The child sobbed running towards her, "Mama, the gun, you-"

He did not get very far as the man snatched the boy up by his shirt collar and held him in the air.

"No! I'm begging you! He's just a boy!" Her voice cracked as she fought to keep from sobbing, "This has nothing to do with him, please don't kill him!"

The man's nose twitched as he sniffed the child. His eyebrows drew together as a look of pure shock came over him.

"This is definitely Sesshomaru's kid," he mumbled to himself, "But he's half…human." Slowly he glanced back over to the woman.

"D-don't," she quaked, "Please, it's not his fault. Take me if you want, but please leave him out of thi-"

"I ain't gonna kill your kid!" the man snapped, as if bothered by the notion. Slowly he lowered the child to the ground again before releasing him. The toddler shot forward and in an instant he was in his mother's arms sobbing into her shoulder.

"Shh, shh," she soothed, holding him close and brushing the back of his head, "It's ok now. You're safe. Mommy's safe. We're both ok." It almost seemed as though she were trying to reassure herself with her own words, she looked visibly shaken.

The man watched the both of them, his eyes darkened with emotion. After a moment, when she collected herself, she looked back up at him.

"…Who are you?" She asked quietly.

"I could ask the same to you," he responded.

"No seriously, who are you? How did you know I was out here?"

"I wasn't looking for you," the man looked annoyed again, "I thought I caught Sesshomaru's scent, but it wasn't him."

"You mean…you're not here to kill or take us back?"

"Take you…what? What the hell are you talking about? I don't even know you!" The man looked baffled, though the relief was clear on her face.

"If you're not here for us then…how do you know S…Sesshomaru?"

"Tch, that cocky bastard," he growled, clearly showing his distaste for the youkai. She held her child closer and glared at him. The man snorted.

"Sesshomaru and I go way back," he explained, "And that ain't a good thing. He's always hated me, hated the fact that I existed, hated that Dad left me his heirloom when he died, and the second he could he kicked me out of Japan and got me stuck out here."

"Wait, your dad…why would Sesshomaru care about…"

"It's his dad too." When she looked startled he pointed at the child in her arms, "His granddad. Apparently I have a nephew."

"…Sesshomaru never mentioned anything about having a brother…"

"Half," the man snorted, "Half-brother." He jerked a thumb towards himself, "Half-demon. That's why he hates me; I doubt he would go out of his way to talk about me." At this he once again glanced at the small boy in her arms, before looking at her with…pity?

"Sesshomaru was always a real jerk," he said quietly, "I knew he'd kill humans without thinking twice, but I never thought that he would…force himself on…" He trailed off, obviously unsure of what to say. She blinked, but the second she caught his meaning she gasped before glaring at him once again.

"Hold it." She said, "If you're implying that he raped me then stop right there. Sesshomaru would never do that to me, it was completely consensual."

"That don't make any sense. Sesshomaru hates humans, there's no way he-"

"It does make sense, he loved me!" She snapped, shifting her son into one arm so she could point a finger at this man, "I don't know how Sesshomaru behaved around his family members, but I do know how he treated me, I couldn't have asked for anyone better."

"And I'm saying that you're wrong! The Sesshomaru I know thinks humans are disgusting, lower than insects. Half-breeds are worse, like hell he'd go and willingly make one!"

"Obviously he did, else my boy wouldn't be here! How dare you go and make accusations about something you know absolutely nothing about!"

"Oh yeah, then where is he now?!"

"He…" She faltered. She glanced down as shadow cast over her face, "…I don't know…I haven't seen him in three years…"

"So he left you then," The man said, as if that proved his point. Her head snapped back up with another glare.

"You're wrong again, he didn't leave me I was the one wh-"

The man's ears twitched, and startled he suddenly looked away in the distance. Confused she glanced over too, not sure what had grabbed his attention. Neither of them had noticed his horse run off after she had shot her gun, but the creature had bolted straight back towards the caravans. This obviously had alerted his companions that something was amiss, as now another was riding towards them.

"Dammit Kagome, I told you not to come," The man hissed, ears flattening in annoyance.

"Inuyasha!" The voice of the incoming rider called out. This time it was a woman, her ebony tresses flying behind her as she rode towards them. She too dressed in western clothing, a green dress with a tiny flower print that buttoned up to the neck and laced at the ankle-length hem, but she herself looked Asian. In just a few minutes she reached them, halting her horse.

"Is everything ok?" She asked, another person who spoke Japanese, "We heard the gunshot and your horse came back without you…"

"Are you stupid?" The man snapped at her, "I told you to stay behind with the others!"

"Oh, and you think that it's ok for you to just ride out alone into danger?!" The woman snapped back at him.

"Because I can handle it." He said crossing his arms, "'Sides there ain't any danger here."

"So then what's the problem with me coming?"

"Ah!...Well you!"

"There isn't then," the woman turned and hopped off of her horse, "Unless you're saying I'm too weak to handle it." She turned, and the look she gave the man promised him a world of hurt if he confirmed it.

"Feh," he said turning away and scowling. He had lost this round. The woman grinned, seeming satisfied with her victory, before turning to look over at the girl with the child.

"Who's this then?" She asked, not rudely at all, "Do you live out here?"

"Ah…" The girl hesitated for a moment, "Yes…we do."

"I see. I hope Inuyasha wasn't too rude. He can be cranky sometimes, but really he's pretty good natured under that rough exterior," She smiled warmly, while the scowling hanyou simply 'feh'd again. "I'm Kagome by the way, what's your name?"

"I'm Kohana," she said, feeling warmed by Kagome's kindness. It had been so long since she'd had a normal conversation with anybody, "This is Futeki." She gestured to the boy in her arms who was shyly burying his face into his mother's shoulder.

"Oh wow, he's adorable," Kagome said. Obviously she must've noticed the boy's tail and knew that he wasn't human but she didn't seem bothered by it, "Is his father nearby?"

"_Sesshomaru_ ain't here, he left her." Inuyasha scoffed.

"I told you," Kohana growled clenching her fist, "He _didn't_ leave me! I was the one who left Japan!"

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked, "Inuyasha's brother?"

"Yes," Kohana responded tartly, "Apparently my son has an uncle, or so that oaf over there claims."

"I see," Kagome said, before looking at Inuyasha annoyed, "Inuyasha that means this girl's your family, you should be nicer to her!"

"She ain't my family!" He snapped back, "Her kid might be related to me, but she ain't!"

"Inuyasha," Kagome growled, "Do I need to say 'it'?!" Inuyasha's eyes widened and his back stiffened. He glared a Kagome, before taking a couple of steps to pick up his fallen hat and turned his back on them, clearly done conversing.

"Hmph," Kagome folded her own arms, before looking to Kohana, "So it's just the two of you out here then?"

"Er well. I suppose so, yes." Kohana shuffled awkwardly, not wanting to admit any weakness, "But it's always been just the two of us. I gave birth to him in America, and we've survived pretty well on our own these past two years. We just found this cabin this spring, and it's been pretty good here, nobody bothers us."

"What are you going to do when winter hits?" Kagome asked, "Do you have enough food?"

"Ah…well, I've been trying to grow some things," she didn't gesture to her decaying dehydrated garden, "And the nearest town is only about two day's journey on foot…"

"Don't you have a horse?"

"…It died."

"I see," Kagome said, a look of pure sympathy crossing her features. She glanced around, taking note of the little broken cabin amidst the wide open desert with nothing in sight for miles. She looked back at Kohana. "You should come with us."

"Huh?"

"What?!" Inuyasha suddenly looked back at them.

"It only makes sense," Kagome put her hands on her hips, "She's all alone out here with a two-year old with no supplies for winter and no transportation. She needs to come live in our town."

"No way! We don't need another mouth to feed!"

"Inuyasha she's your family, she'll die out here!"

"I told you, she ain't my family!" He pointed at Futeki, "The kid can come with us, but not her!"

"We're not taking a child away from its mother!"

"Well then her kid'll die too, because we're not taking her with us!"

"Rrrgh, Inuyasha _SIT BOY!"_ There was a yelp as Inuyasha suddenly fell face first into the ground, forming a small crater. Kohana's jaw dropped.

"Wha…How did you do that?!"

"Oh that?" Kagome laughed nervously, "It's just a little something to keep him in line. I come from a family of mikos so it's just a little trick I learned."

"You…wait." Kohana frowned, "Excuse me for asking, by why…Well I never really expected to find anybody else Japanese here, but why is a miko so far away…I mean there aren't any shrines at all…"

"Uh well, it's sort of a long story," Kagome said, "But after all, why are you out here? It has to do with the collapse of the shogunate doesn't it?"

"Ah, er sort of…it…it's a little complicated. And er well, as you can tell my son isn't very welcome in most places, even here…they can tell he's not…" Kohana trailed off. In her eyes her precious little boy couldn't be more perfect, but she had learned a hundred times the hard way that hanyou were not welcome most anywhere, and somehow that fact had followed her even to America.

"…No I understand," Kagome said, eyes flitting towards Inuyasha for a second, "But you see…we live in small mining town up in the mountains. Well, it used to be a mining town anyway. It wasn't very prosperous, so most people ignore it other than those of us who live there. Your son would be welcome there; the townspeople are used to hanyou by now. In fact, they were even kind enough to make Inuyasha the sheriff."

"Wait…Him?!"

"I know it sounds a little ridiculous," Kagome giggled, "But I mean, he's saved the town so many times from thieves and bandits and cougars. They were all skeptical at first, but he's sort of become like a hero to them, it really only made sense to let him be the one to guard the town."

Inuyasha who was now standing scoffed, and grumbled something about 'needy townspeople too weak to save their own skins'.

"So don't you see?" Kagome said, "The town would take you in, they would never turn away the sheriff's nephew."

"Yes but…" Kohana struggled for a moment. Sure Kagome seemed nice, but should she really trust these strangers? What if Inuyasha was lying about being Sesshomaru's brother? She'd been on the run for so long, taught to trust no one, there was no love anywhere for a foreign unmarried mother of a half-demon baby. She and she alone was responsible for caring for the child, any wrong decision on her part would end in his death.

"I…I can't speak English very well, and my son knows none of it…"

"I can teach you what I know," Kagome offered, "Oh and even Sango can help you, she's been helping me out, you'll like her she's Japanese too just like us." In her excitement Kagome had stepped forward and grasped Kohana's hand, "Please come with us."

Kohana struggled for another moment, but her resistance was failing. As she looked at Kagome she saw no trace of malice or deceit, this young woman truly wanted to help her. Futeki turned and glanced at Kagome's hand, and hesitantly he placed his tiny palm atop hers. He giggled slightly and his tail began to wag.

That sealed it for her. It seemed silly to trust the judgment of a two-year old, but if he thought Kagome was ok then she could no longer resist her as well.

"I suppose…winter would be a little harsh out here alone…I guess we could stay with you for a couple of months…." Kohana blushed, not really sure how to accept a stranger's kindness anymore. Kagome smiled warmly, and glanced to Inuyasha.

"Tch, fine. Whatever. Just tell her to get her things and let's get going. We've wasted too much time just standing around yapping," Inuyasha snorted, accepting defeat once again. Kagome shook her head but continued to smile.

"Do you need help packing anything?" She asked Kohana.

"No, we don't have much, it'll only take me a moment," She said.

"Then hurry up, we don't have all day!"

Kagome glared and turned to bicker with Inuyasha once again as Kohana walked towards her cabin. Futeki squirmed in her arms, seeming to have completely forgotten his earlier panic. It seemed he would be content with anything, he had always been happy to follow his mother wherever she went.

She hoped she was making the right decision.

* * *

She had been just a young village girl when she had first met him, still filling into her awkward height that sixteen years of age had given her. She remembered the day clearly, she had been out working in the rice fields when she noticed one of the children of the village, Rin, scurry out of the forest shifting about nervously. Abandoning her work in the field Kohana hurried over to see if everything was all right.

Rin was one of the many orphans of the village, left parentless after thieves had plundered her original village. The child had become virtually mute after the incident, only Kohana who was one of the few who actually bothered to look after her that could get a word out, and even then it was usually a simple 'yes' or 'no'.

Naturally it came as a shock when all of a sudden Rin began blabbing about an injured man in the woods. Kohana's joy at the girl's newfound speech had given way to confusion. Man in the woods? What on earth was she talking about? When she suggested that they go get a few more of the villagers to go help this person, Rin had balked and insisted that there wasn't time and she alone should come help.

Against all of her better judgment, for all she knew it could a thief or murderer, she abandoned her job in the field and followed Rin back into the forest. They walked on for what seemed like a long time, but before Kohana's nervousness got the better of her and she turned away for help they passed through several bushes and stopped at the base of a great oak tree. What she saw made her gasp.

While there certainly was an injured some_thing_ at the base of the tree, he was without a doubt no man. He was…stunning. Kohana had never seen anything like it before, while he had the basic shape of a human, his hair was long and silver with strange markings on his face, and at the tips of his fingers he had claws. He dressed in the clothing and armor of some sort of noble, with a strange furry boa over his right shoulder. When he turned to look at them his eyes were gold.

The only word she could think of to describe this creature was 'beautiful', there was no human on this earth who could ever compare in looks, and so she was certain: this was a youkai. A demon.

She knew why Rin didn't want her to go get help, youkai were trouble, they slaughtered humans and devoured entire villages whole. That one was so close to their own was extremely dangerous, the smart thing to do would be to slay him and purify this area immediately. But as this one stared at the both of them he didn't move an inch, in fact after a few moments he looked the other way as though bored. Strangely, standing here in his presence Kohana didn't feel threatened in the slightest. Intimidated, yes, but not threatened.

Then again the gaping bleeding wound in his chest might have had something to do with it.

Hesitantly the two girls edged forward, but before they could get within five feet of him he ordered them to leave without even glancing in their direction. His voice was like ice, low and dangerous. Kohana shivered, but neither she nor Rin turned away.

"Are…you dying?" She asked quietly. Several long moments passed in silence.

"No." He finally answered, still not looking at them.

Kohana glanced at him again, trying to re-assess the situation. The wound he had looked pretty deep, it would no doubt have killed any human, if what he claimed was true then it was proof that he was definitely something more. He didn't sound as though he were in pain when he spoke, so either he was hiding it or he wasn't much of a talker. He had to be in some sort of discomfort though; otherwise he wouldn't be here lying against the tree.

Either way, he definitely did not seem like the type to accept help easily. The right thing to do at this point would be to return to the village and report his presence and let them take it from there, however…she sighed. She knew if she did that he would be destroyed, and really he wasn't causing anybody any harm out here. He was just trying to find a place to lay low and tend to his wounds, she was certain he would be gone by the time he healed and no one else would be any wiser.

Perhaps then she and Rin should do what they could to help him along. She untied the container secured to her obi, something to hold water fashioned out of bamboo. It was half empty, but she knew of a river nearby to fill it in. She instructed Rin to go gather some food from the forest and to meet her back there.

When the two girls returned they had a meager meal of water and berries and they moved forward to lay it before the youkai.

"Unnecessary," he said causing them to halt mid-crouch, "I don't need your help." Rin cast a worried glance over to Kohana. The older girl hesitated for a moment before half-smirking and continued.

"Don't think of it as help," she responded, "We're just leaving this food here in the forest, whether or not you eat it before something else does is up to you."

His eyes slid in their direction, his expression unreadable. A moment later and he was looking away again, making no move to accept their kindness nor registering their presence any longer. Rin continued to look worried, though Kohana placed a hand on the child's shoulder and urged her to leave. There wasn't much else they could do at the moment other than give this guy the privacy he obviously wanted.

As the two made their way back to the village through the thick underbrush Rin asked Kohana if she would tell anybody else about the injured youkai. She smiled softly before shaking her head. For the time being it would be best if they kept this as a secret between the two of them, no need to involve anyone else. She assured the younger girl though that they would be back tomorrow to check on him and Rin grinned.

Just as they had planned, the next day the two girls slipped away into the forest when they were certain no one would notice. The youkai still lay beneath the oak tree, though surprisingly the food looked as though it had been picked through and half of the water was gone. Whether or not he had actually taken it couldn't be proved; though no animal in their right mind would've gotten this close to eat it.

Kohana and Rin looked to each other and shared a smile. The demon glanced at them for a moment but then looked away as they set out to refill the water and food. When they returned Kohana once again assured him that this 'had nothing to do with helping him' she was just doing as she pleased by leaving food in the middle of the forest.

This continued on for several days and the girls did their best to keep it a secret from the village. Even so, whenever Rin had a moment alone with Kohana she would babble on and on about the strange man in the woods: Why was he there? Where did he come from? How did he get hurt? The questions never ceased, Kohana had never seen Rin so chatty before. It seemed that by her focusing on taking care of someone else she was forgetting her own grief, like a child who had just been tasked with raising a puppy (this thought would later become extremely amusing). In a strange way she was healing.

But just as Rin was improving, the weird thing was it seemed as if the youkai was not. He had claimed that he wasn't dying, but every time they were there his wound never seemed any smaller. Kohana couldn't tell if it was still bleeding or not, it shouldn't be, but there was no way she could get close enough to find out. His condition troubled her, but she really didn't know what to do.

One day as she and Rin headed out into the woods to 'leave food out there for no particular reason' Kohana noticed that it seemed a little noisier than usual; the birds were definitely more active. In fact, the closer they got to the youkai the more birds there seemed to be, and they all appeared to be…crows.

The only time she had ever seen crows before was when something had died, usually the filthy scavengers just showed up to devour the remains of the body. Paling slightly she halted. If the worst had happened, she didn't want Rin to see it. Quickly she came up with the excuse of needing a fresh water container; the one they were using was getting dirty. She urged Rin to hurry back to the village to get it and surprisingly the young girl complied without an argument. Knowing she didn't have much time until the other returned, Kohana took off running fearing the worst.

When she reached the oak tree she was astounded by how many crows there were. They littered the trees, black clouds coating what should have been green leaves. All of their attention seemed turned on the youkai who still lay there wounded, though his eyes were closed and he remained motionless. Was he…dead? The appearance of so many crows suggested that he was, but none of them had touched him yet…

Swallowing, Kohana stepped forward. She had to see if he was gone, before Rin got here…slowly she edged towards the youkai, very aware that she was now closer to him than she had ever been before. He was still unmoving. Pushing her nervousness aside she slowly reached for his neck, hoping to find a pulse.

The second she touched him he leapt forward with a snarl, eyes glowing blood-red as he bared his deadly fangs. Her heart almost stopped as she yelped and fell backwards on her rear, several crows fluttered anxiously. His fearsome look only lasted a moment, once he seemed to notice her his eyes faded to gold and he lay back down, though he continued to regard her with a glare.

"Y..you're alive," she said, gulping as she regained her breath.

"I have already informed you that I'm not dying," he sounded annoyed.

"But…the crows…they're all…."

"Bothersome vermin," he said before closing his eyes, determined to cease conversation. As she gazed at him she frowned. His voice had sounded slightly strained when he spoke, and now as he lay there he looked paler than before. No matter what he told her it was obvious that his health was not improving, even the crows nearby thought he was on death's doorstep. He was too proud to admit weakness.

It would not be long before the birds got brazen enough and attempted to devour him. She didn't know how close any of them would actually get, but if he wasted energy fending them off his body would not focus on healing. Even if it bothered him, she had to do something. She would not stand by and let this be his end. She looked around and when her eyes settled on the largest stick she could find she grabbed it.

Weapon in hand, she turned her attention to the offending birds and began her assault. Yelling, she swung her stick at them, satisfied when several within her reach squawked and fled to another tree. She continued her attack, until she had all the crows in a frenzy trying to escape her weapon. There were too many to chase around the clearing, but whenever any of them came near the oak tree she was at them again scaring them off.

"Stop wasting your time," the youkai said causing her to glance down and see him staring at her again, "There's no point, they'll only return once you leave."

"Don't think I'm doing this for you," she lied, knowing full well that he was aware, "I happen to like this tree; I don't want them to ruin it." At this he gave her another annoyed look but didn't argue. She continued to bat away the crows until eventually she heard movement in the forest. When she saw Rin approaching the clearing she took a moment to leave the tree intercept her before she saw anything.

"What's the matter?" The younger girl asked looking worried, "Is he ok?"

"He's doing fine," Kohana said, not wanting to upset her, "There's just a bunch of birds that's all. They're bothering him, so I'm going to have to stay for a while and chase them off."

"Oh, can I help?"

"No, there's something else I need you to do, something very important." Kohana put her hand on the child's shoulder and looked her in the eye, "If we're both gone someone in the village will notice and send a party to come looking for us. We've got to keep him secret, so I want you to go back and tell them that I've gone to the next village over and I won't be back for the rest of the day, ok?"

"How long will you stay here?"

"I don't know," she said, "For a while at least. I promise I'll return tomorrow before anybody asks you anymore questions. Can you do this for me?" Rin paused for a moment before nodding. Kohana hugged the younger girl and she handed her the new water container she had fetched before heading back to the village.

When Kohana returned to the oak tree, several of the crows had returned and she had to start her frenzy again to scare them off. She stood guard like this for several hours, managing successfully to keep the birds at bay. While this had been going on she hadn't really been paying much attention to the sky. It wasn't until the crows seemed to stop approaching her and slowly vanished into the branches of another tree that she notices something was off, and the distant rumble of thunder seemed to explain why.

Frowning, she glanced again at the wounded youkai who still lay there as if asleep. The rain would do him no good, and for as much cover as the oak tree gave him it still wouldn't keep him dry. Luckily there was an evergreen nearby, and when she approached it several of the lower boughs seemed dry enough to snap them off. She began to push down on them, sometimes using her whole weight to do so, and ignored the splinters that were beginning to fill her hands. When she had enough boughs she dragged them back over to the oak tree and set to make a quick small lean-to that would shelter him from the weather.

"Don't worry," she said, interrupting before he could protest when she noticed him awake again, "It's not for you. I just happen to need a place to stay dry while I protect my tree from the birds." He didn't point out that where she had built her shelter suspiciously covered him completely. She continued her work, and by the time she finished the first few drops were beginning to fall. Quickly she ducked underneath, setting herself several feet away from the youkai not wanting to invade his personal space.

What started as a few drops soon picked up into a full downpour; occasionally lightning ripped through the sky, followed quickly by booming thunder. Kohana hugged her knees close and rested her chin on them. She was thankful she had the shelter built in time, but the rain was causing the temperature to drop and she wished she had brought a blanket. She sighed, wishing that the storm would end soon.

"Your name."

"Huh?" Kohana blinked, thinking she had heard something on the wind. When she glanced back at the youkai he was staring at her with those golden eyes, as if expecting an answer.

"Your name," he repeated, though he didn't sound annoyed, "What is it?"

"Oh, I uh," she stumbled for a moment, slightly caught off guard, "I'm Kohana."

"And the girl?"

"She's Rin."

"Hn," he replied, and offered nothing else.

"…Well?" Kohana urged after a few moments, "I told you my name. This is where you tell me yours." He glanced away as if ignoring her and said nothing. She waited a moment, but eventually decided that he wasn't going to respond. Rolling her eyes, she looked back out towards the rain.

"Sesshomaru."

"…Se..sshomaru?" Kohana blinked and looked back at him. He raised his chin slightly, but refused to repeat himself again.

"That's…an interesting name," She offered, not knowing what else to say. Of course a youkai would be named something threatening.

"Hn."

"You…aren't much of a talker are you?" The blank look he gave was his answer. She sighed and glanced away again, suddenly feeling awkward sitting there. Why had she stayed? The rain had chased the crows off, and now that she had built him a shelter so honestly he didn't need her anymore. Not that he thought he did in the first place, he claimed he was doing fine when it was so obvious that he wasn't…

"Why isn't your wound healing?" She mumbled aloud, and instantly regretted it, "I'm sorry, that's probably personal, I didn't mean to intrude…"

"Miasma," he responded quietly, strangely not sounding offended.

"…You were poisoned? How?" Her curiosity piqued, and she couldn't stop more questions from tumbling out.

"A wretched coward who resorts to deception and falsehoods instead of facing his opponents," his eyes narrowed as he spoke, showing his disgust. Kohana frowned at the vague answer, but it was enough to hint that this youkai had enemies.

"So someone attacked you…are you…going to go after them?"

"Yes. Once I am healed, he will die."

"But your wound-"

"You probably aren't able to see it. The miasma is nearly gone; once it is it should not take me long to heal."

"Uh," she paused to think about that for a moment, "Oh. I see. You were just waiting for the poison to leave your body." He nodded, and slowly she smiled. After that he spoke no more, but she didn't push it. Of what little Kohana knew of this Sesshomaru guy he didn't seem the type to really say much to anyone. The fact that he had shared with her what he did was a mystery to her; perhaps he was just bored and felt there was no danger in telling her the nature of his injury. Either way, she took what little she had learned as a small reward for her efforts and before she knew it she had nodded off.

By the time she awoke little rays of sunlight littered through the branches of her make-shift shelter. Blinking, it took her a moment to notice that she was sprawled out on the ground in a disheveled lump. When she realized where she was she instantly blushed and sat up quickly, hitting her head against the branches causing rain droplets to shower over her. Grumbling her discomfort, she looked behind her but Sesshomaru was not there. Her eyes widened as confusion set in, and she crawled out from beneath her shelter.

When she looked up she saw him. There he stood, silver hair flowing gently in the breeze as he gazed out into the woods, as if he were a king surveying his land. She had never seen anything so regal in her life, but before she allowed herself to become breathless she glanced at his chest and gasped.

"Your wound," she exclaimed, "it's gone!" He was completely clean, not even a drop of blood remained to show any sign of injury. It was almost as if it had never happened. His eyes flitted towards her and he gave the briefest of nods.

"I need to go get Rin," she said as she stood, turning towards the edge of the clearing, "She'll want to know that you're-"

"You should return to your village," he interrupted her, voice completely level, "Do not bring her back to the forest."

"Huh? Wait, she'll want to see you, after all that…" her words died as she turned back to look at him and met only emptiness. He had vanished.

Kohana stood there for a moment, unsure of what had just happened. In the blink of an eye he had disappeared, as if he had never even been there. Slowly she frowned, unsure of why she felt so…saddened by this.

"Goodbye….then," she mumbled dejectedly. Quietly she left the clearing and headed back towards her village.


	2. Crossing

Here's chapter two. I've decided I want to try and have a new chapter up once a month at least on this fic, unless time permits more. The next chapter might not come for a bit longer though, as I leave for a month-long study abroad trip to Asia in two days. That's why I pushed myself to get this chapter up before I left, so it may not be as clean. Either way, thanks for reading!

* * *

As it turned out the caravans that she saw were actually referred to as 'wagon trains' or so Kagome informed her. Despite living in this country for nearly three years Kohana had never had anyone fully explain the local terminology, what little English she had learned she had only gained by listening to others speak it when she had stayed in cities and towns. After only one day of being with Kagome, she felt she had learned more than the entire three years spent here.

The wagons themselves were strange to her. Of course she knew how they worked; she had just never been in one before. The cover over the wagon actually provided protection from the sun and each one was full to the brim with barrels and crates. There were eight total in this train, each one pulled by two mules. However, after riding in one the first day she found that she much preferred travel on horseback. Sure it was easier to hold her son in the wagon, but horses were less bumpy and much faster.

There were two horses in the group, but those were reserved for Inuyasha and a man known as Buckler. Buckler was a large bearded man who said very little and always seemed mentally occupied by something miles ahead of him. According to Kagome, Buckler was some sort of hunter who spent most of his time travelling the land and trapping animals. As a result he knew the area better than he knew the hairs on his arm and was the perfect guide. He had a cousin who lived in their town, which is how they were able to contact Buckler and got him to agree to lead their wagon train through the wilderness.

The purpose of their travels was to fetch goods and supplies for the town, hence all the boxes and barrels stored in each wagon. Winter was still a few months away, but once the snow hit in the North transporting goods would become next to impossible. Their town was well off the beaten path and over a week's journey away from any other civilized area, so it was only intelligent that they stock up now and have an excess of supplies before they were forced to wait out the weather.

Of course, they weren't the only ones who lived out here. Besides the occasional farmhouse or ranch, several bandit camps littered the land, drawn out here by the seclusion and distance from the law. They would need supplies too once winter hit, though their methods of procuring it were usually less than legal. A small train of eight wagons, full of supplies, alone in the wilderness would seem like gold to them. Which is exactly why Inuyasha was there; the town had agreed to send their sheriff with the wagons so that their winter supplies would return home safe. The town had enough men to defend itself for a week or two without him.

So, with Inuyasha guarding the wagons, and Buckler leading the train, they made excellent progress without any danger befalling them. This had left most of the train bored out of their minds, so naturally when Inuyasha and Kagome brought in some girl they found out in the desert with a strange non-human baby who claimed to be a lost relative of the sheriff they were the talk of all eight wagons. Only Buckler seemed absolutely uninterested with the sudden addition to their party.

The most frustrating part about it was the fact that Kohana understood less than half of what they were saying, but by the way she kept receiving stares and hushed whispers she knew it was about her. Kagome assured her that most of them were just curious, but she still instinctively shielded Futeki when anybody stared at the child for too long. Nobody seemed frightened of him, but experience had taught her that she could never be too cautious.

The only other person on the train who seemed just as outgoing and friendly as Kagome was another young woman named Rosemary, the wife of one of the other men on the train Mr. Hawkes. She was a petite young woman with bright red hair, something Kohana had never seen before, and was the first person on the train to openly greet her. She even went so far as to ask Kagome the proper way to greet someone and issued a polite, though mispronounced 'Hajimemashite'. She was a peppy and cheerful young woman, and nothing seemed to keep her from smiling.

In complete contrast, there was Sango, the other Japanese girl Kagome had mentioned. Sango was not rude; the way she held herself and spoke it was very clear that she had been taught manners, she just seemed…distant. While she was very polite to everyone she spoke to, she kept all of her words brief and formal; the only person she ever really held conversations with was Kagome, and that was usually when nobody else was around. It seemed as though she preferred to keep to herself.

On the other hand, the one thing that stuck out about Sango was her strength. Though she was not as dainty or soft looking as Rosemary or Kagome, she was still pretty short in comparison to the rest of the train. In fact the only two people that she was taller than were Kagome and Kohana, and judging by her looks she wasn't much older than them either. While her hair was a darker shade of brown than Kohana's, and their bangs were similar in cut, she could've sworn Sango's almost made her look like some sort of princess or daughter of a village chief. Despite this, the clothing she wore, pale blouses and green skirts, where distinctly plainer looking than anything Kagome or Rosemary wore, but the real give-away were her calloused hands.

Sango was the driver of their wagon. Though there were definitely more men on the train than women, in fact the addition of Kohana brought the female count to four, Sango refused to let anybody else drive the wagon she shared with Kagome and now a young girl with a child. Whenever her mules acted up, she kept a firm grip on the reigns and had them behaving in a matter of seconds. The few times their wagon broke a wheel or an axel she would quietly stop the wagon, hop out and retrieve the spare parts from the back. She would have the problem fixed before Inuyasha or Buckler had a chance to stop the wagon and get someone to help her.

Needless to say, Kohana found Sango to be slightly intimidating. The woman was clearly entirely self-sufficient and had a proper upbringing, nothing at all like a bumpkin from a rice-farming village. The young mother was very self-conscious around the other girl, and Sango never made too much of an effort to strike up a conversation with the other. Save for the occasional curious looks the wagon driver would afford to the little hanyou in their wagon, the two rarely had any sort of interaction.

Fortunately, while there was some uneasiness there was no hostility between any of the women. The three Japanese girls rode in the same wagon, sometimes joined by Rosemary for a bit when she sought female company, and all of them worked well together in the evenings when the train set up camp and they had to prepare supper. The men helped out of course, but the main part of the cooking was overseen by the girls.

One night, as everyone was settling in to their own wagons after eating dinner, Kohana sat out in the grass with her back against one of the wagon's wheels. She had gotten Futeki to eat dinner, but the cool night air seemed to give the toddler energy and refused to go to sleep. When they were on their own it didn't matter how late the child stayed up, but now that they were in a group he needed to be quiet. She didn't want everyone coming after her angry because a squealing child kept them from getting rest, but all of her attempts to coo at and calm the little hanyou just left him giggling, tail wagging. Sighing, she glanced at the full moon in the sky. It would be several more weeks before she'd get a night where her son didn't have unlimited energy…

"Kagome," Kohana suddenly heard a voice whisper. Turning her head she realized it had come from the other side of the wagon.

"Yes? What is it Sango?" She heard Kagome's whispered reply. The two were quietly conversing on the other side of the wagon. Kohana didn't want to eavesdrop, but she couldn't help but overhear every word they said. With the little amount of space they had it was impossible not to listen.

"Kagome…what do you plan on doing with her once we return?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…she has a child, and she hasn't said whether or not she's married…I'm not sure if anyone in the town will take her in." Kohana visibly winced. It was apparent the two girls were talking about her, though they must not have known she was listening. No, she wasn't married. She knew that her situation was shameful, something most people wished to avoid. It didn't mean that it hurt any less hearing it said aloud…

"I was thinking she could stay with us. I'm sure Dr. and Mrs. Silburn won't mind, they'd love her son…"

"…Is that such a good idea? We don't really know her. I know the town…accepts Inuyasha, and her child is a relative of his but…who knows what her intentions are…"

"She's harmless Sango. I would've sensed something by now if she was more than human. I don't know Inuyasha's brother, or how she got involved with youkai, but I'm certain she's only worried about taking care of her baby."

"If you say so…"

Their conversation turned after that, but Kohana still felt stung. Sure Kagome had trusted her and welcomed her in, but that didn't mean the rest of the town would feel the same. This place had seemed different, what with a half-demon for a sheriff and a miko in the town, but she shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. If Sango was any indication of what others would think, then once again she was about to wind up in a place that distrusted her. Her son was a monster, and she the witch who had birthed him, she'd heard it all before. She wished that just for once she could find a place to live where nobody would care, somewhere she could raise her child in peace.

It occurred to her that she could always just head back to her cabin in the desert. She had been with the train for several days, and they had put plenty of miles between here and there, but return wasn't impossible. She could nab one of the horses, slip away into the night, and be long gone before anybody even noticed her absence. In a few days' time she and Futeki could be right back to their solitude and pretend this whole thing had never happened.

Thankfully the boy had settled down some and when she quietly stood he didn't squeal. Stepping as lightly as possible, she began to walk around the train's night circle in search of Buckler's horse.

"Goin' somewhere?"

Kohana nearly leapt out of her skin and managed to fight back a scream before it escaped her. Turning quickly, she saw Inuyasha watching her from behind one of the wagons, arms folded and a scowl on his face.

Of course. The train was guarded by a hanyou. She of all people should know how hyper-alert their senses were, and how little sleep they needed. She cursed her own stupidity.

"If you're planning on leaving, I won't stop you."

"I-I wasn't leaving, Futeki won't sleep, I just felt a w-walk might help him calm down…" She knew he wasn't fooled in the slightest.

"Look, I don't care what you do," Inuyasha continued, "But before you go running off, take a look over there." He raised a clawed finger and pointed off into the distance. She turned and squinted into the darkness and saw nothing. She stared for a few more moments, but just as she was about to give up her eyes caught the movement of a shadow across a ridge several hundred yards away. She looked back to the sheriff.

"We're being followed. Have been for a few days now. Don't know what they want, but if I had to guess it has something to do with our cargo," Inuyasha bared his fangs slightly as he spoke.

"…Bandits?" She asked, eyes widening.

"Maybe. If they are, they're probably waiting for the right moment to strike. They're keeping their distance for now, but who knows how long that will last." He turned to look back at her, "You can try to get past them if you want, but I doubt you'd last." Kohana bristled at the insult.

"I've gotten away from bigger threats than this; I think I can manage sneaking past a group of stupid thieves just fine."

"Like I said I won't stop you," He shrugged, "But I can't let you take the kid."

She instantly clung to her son tighter and took a step away, glaring.

"Look, I ain't gonna take him from you now, but as the sheriff I can't let you take my nephew off to get killed."

"_Your_ nephew? You didn't even know he existed until a few days ago."

"So? Doesn't mean I'll let him die because his mother is stupid."

"Stupid?!" She raised her voice angrily, "Look here mister, you have no right to insult me and order me around, if I want to take my son away from this train, then I'll damn well take him-"

"Would you shut up?!" The older hanyou snapped, "I ain't gonna let you take him to die, and that's that!"

He was right. She knew he was right. But man, did it rankle her to have to admit it. Her escape had failed, though her son was safer for it. Her only option now was to go back to the wagon and try to ignore the fact that one of the women she shared it with clearly didn't like her.

"I can see why Sesshomaru never mentioned you," she threw over her shoulder as she stormed away, "Who'd want to admit to being related to such a bull-headed moron?"

"Bull-headed?! You're the one who's bull-headed! I have no idea how he was even able to stand you long enough to make a child in the first place!"

Her response was to ignore him, though she grumbled angrily the entire way. When she returned to her wagon she was greeted by a surprised Kagome and Sango, both unaware that she had even left. She mumbled a polite "goodnight" and went to the spare mattress that had been set up for her, though her son's squirming and restlessness prevented her from actually getting any sleep for several more hours.

The wagon train continued on for several more days. Kohana tried her best to pretend the events of that night had never happened, though she was now hyper aware of any sort of look Sango gave her or her son, and the several times she made eye contact with Inuyasha she couldn't keep herself from glaring. Kagome remained as cheerful as ever, though sometimes the young mother wondered if the miko was able to sense her discomfort. Even if everyone else has put off by her, Kagome was always kind to both her and her son. Out of respect she did her best to keep her disdain at a minimum around the miko.

When night hit and the wagons circled up for camp, Kohana did begin making a habit of watching into the distance. Sure enough, each night the shadows that were following remained not far away. They had yet to draw any closer, but they did not abandon the wagon train. Grudgingly, she did admit it was a bit of a comfort whenever she saw Inuyasha wide awake each night waiting to see if the shadows came any closer. The hanyou was a jerk, but he did make a good watchdog.

As the group traveled the terrain began to change. Gone were the cacti and the sunbaked red dirt, replaced with rolling hills and an ocean of grass. The mountains that loomed in the distance drew closer and somehow the sky seemed to grow bigger. People on the train began to chatter, it wouldn't be long now until they finally reached their destination.

One morning, just as the train was finishing their breakfast and preparing to head off, Buckler rode in on his horse and immediately went to Inuyasha. The man often disappeared in the mornings to scout the trail ahead, though a lot of people usually forgot that he was gone. Buckler rarely spoke and was never in a hurry. To see him in such haste caused a stir within the train. The burly man approached the grouchy hanyou and swiftly said something in a low voice. Inuyasha's response was to shout 'dammit' and angrily throw his hat down.

Word spread quickly through the train, and it wasn't long at all before everyone was aware of Buckler's distress. Ahead the trail split in two, one path cutting through a mountain and another winding around the base. The train was supposed to have taken the path through the mountain, as it was quicker and got them right back to the town on the other side. The path however was blocked, it seemed a rock slide occurred sometime within the past few days, despite the fact that there had been no rain in weeks, and there was no way a wagon would be able to cross or get around the pile.

Their only other option was to take the path that cut around the mountain. Not only would that take longer but a river cut across the lower path, flanked on both sides by the slopes of the mountain. Crossing the river seemed impossible, but that morning Inuyasha got the wagons up and moving anyway, leading the way with Buckler. Out of nervousness Rosemary stayed with her husband, leaving the three Japanese girls alone in their wagon.

"How will we get across the river?" Kohana mused aloud, ignoring her own growing anxiety about the situation.

"If there's a low enough spot, the mules should be able to able to walk through," Sango responded calmly, "If not, the weight is spread pretty evenly on the wagon floors; they might be able to float." Kohana withheld her surprised expression, not used to Sango saying more than three words to her. She looked for some sort motive, but the other girl seemed intent on driving her wagon.

"Why don't we just turn around and look for another way?" Kagome asked, "I know it'll take a lot longer, but it has to be safer than just pushing through a river."

"There's danger in all directions," Sango said quietly, "The river might be difficult to cross, but if we go back we'll run right into whoever's been stalking us."

"Someone's stalking us?" Kagome seemed surprised. Kohana's eyes narrowed as she glanced at Sango, had Inuyasha told her? She hadn't seen the sheriff telling anyone else about the shadows, she assumed he was keeping quiet so as not to cause panic through the train, so she in turn had kept her own mouth shut about it. Had Sango noticed the shadows on her own?

"Yes…they have been for a while now. I don't know why Inuyasha hasn't done anything about it, but they starting following us shortly after Kohana arrived…" It was then that Sango spared a glance at the young mother, and her look was far from friendly.

…Sango didn't think she had anything to do with the stalkers, did she?

Instinctively Kohana glared back, but she bit her tongue. For whatever reason this woman had decided she was a trouble maker, and while she longed to snap at her in defense, doing it in front of Kagome held her back. Kagome was the first person in a long time that had showed her kindness and openly trusted her. Selfishly Kohana did not want to ruin the trust that one person, albeit still slightly a stranger, held in her by suddenly going off on another person that seemed close to her.

She did however silently resolve to grab her son and bolt, should Sango attempt to do anything. Her flight had failed last time, but if Sango suddenly decided to rally others against her she would not hesitate to protect her child, even if it meant dodging past the creepy stalkers behind them. Somehow she'd do it if she had to, but for now she simply sat down and glared out into the wilderness.

Kagome, having sensed the tension between the two girls, immediately tried to brush the followers off as another travelling party and entirely a coincidence. It seemed she was a natural peace-keeper, changing the subject and made conversation light with ease. Slowly it was proving that only Inuyasha was able to make the cheerful girl lose her temper, but Kohana decided not to comment on it.

It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky before they were able to make out the sounds of rushing water, and finally the group came upon the river. Luckily autumn was just starting, the spring melting had gone ages ago and it hadn't rained in days, so they did not find the river swollen. The sluggish water was however still pretty deep. Roughly thirty or so meters wide it would not be easy for any of the wagons to cross.

Annoyed, Inuyasha halted the wagons and said something to Buckler before turning his horse and cantering off upstream. About twenty minutes later he returned and announced that there was a shallower part of the river that they would be able to cross. Starting up the train again, the wagons pushed their mules upstream, though their pace was slow.

The location Inuyasha found was indeed shallower, though the river ran faster here. It looked as though two mules could walk across, though the water would almost be up to their necks and the wagons would possibly be floating. Inuyasha and Buckler announced that they would cross each wagon one by one and ordered everyone to start securing crates and barrels.

Everyone the train grew nervous, though they did as they were told. While they were busy securing items Buckler grabbed a long coil of rope and volunteered to cross first on his horse. Though taller than the mules, his horse was able to walk across the river except for a small section in the middle where it had to swim. Once on the other side he secured his mount. With Buckler at the far end and Inuyasha at the beginning both would be able to help wagons get started and then pull them in safely.

Everyone was hesitant to get started, but eventually Rosemary and Mr. Hawkes volunteered to go first. Water sloshed their wheels as their mules balked nervously in the water, but Mr. Hawkes pushed his team onwards. Inuyasha stood by in case anything went wrong, and as soon as the mules reached the point where they needed to swim the wagon began to bob precariously. They began to float downstream, but with hard effort the mules made it to the other side where Buckler was waiting to help them forward. As soon as the first wagon was ashore everyone let loose the breath they were holding.

Crossing the wagons wasn't impossible.

After the Hawkes crossed the next few wagons set out. Progress was slow, but one by one wagons made it across to safety. By the time the third wagon had gone, the men-folk of the train decided it was time for the three women and baby to cross. With plenty of people on either side to help them it should be safe. One of the men offered to drive for Sango but she heartily refused.

"Now, don't lose your head and panic," Inuyasha instructed their wagon just before they hit the water, "If your mules start to balk just keep pushing them like normal, and don't rock your wagon."

Sango gave a polite nod, though she seemed as though she already knew this and deemed his advice as common sense. Kohana, trying to ignore horrific visions of scenarios where the wagon collapsed and her child drowned, drew Futeki and herself to the center of the wagon as far away from the water as possible. Kagome, seated right next to Sango, seemed completely at ease with everything.

"I'm not worried," she said, looking at Inuyasha, "If anything happens I know you'll be there to help us." Her warm smile caused the hanyou to blush slightly, and he quickly looked away.

"Feh. Just…get crossing already. The sooner you're over there the better."

Anyone else would be annoyed at his apparent dismissal, but Kagome continued to smile and nodded. Sango urged the mules forward, and then they were in the river. The wagon creaked as the animals strained to pull it forward, and the cloth cover began to show signs where the water was hitting it, but the thing appeared to remain stable. Kohana's heart beat strongly within her chest, but as they continued to progress her nervousness lessened slightly. Once they made it past the part where they needed to swim, then she would allow herself to be calm.

It was just before they reached that point when they heard the first gunshot. Before anyone had time to panic several more shots were fired, tearing into the wagons. Whooping and shouting, a swarm of men descended upon their train from both slopes of the river. Too flustered, their own men were not ready for the ambush and scrambled to gather their own rifles to defend. The mules began to panic, gun smoke filled the air, and chaos engulfed the train.

Futeki at this point began to squalling causing their mules in the river to panic further. Sango grit her teeth as she fought to regain control, but with a sudden scream Kagome suddenly jumped up and pulled Sango back into the wagon. Several bullets rained on the driver's seat, killing one of their mules and maiming the other. Their remaining frightened animal thrashed wildly, the river slowly becoming tinted red with its blood. They were completely stranded in the middle.

From the far bank Inuyasha roared with anger, but before he could do anything there was a sudden shot and a gruff voice began to shout. Fearfully, Kagome crawled to the back of the wagon and peered out the back flaps to see what was happening. Inuyasha gripped a bleeding shoulder as he bared his fangs, though he dare not move as several men on the bank had their guns pointed at the wagon in the river. On the far bank Buckler, gripping his rifle rightly, was faced with the same problem.

One of the men on horseback, a tall rail-thin man whose face was covered with a bandana, was shouting something to Inuyasha. Kohana pressed her toddler's face to her breast, trying her best to shush the frightened child. What little she could hear of the conversation she could only half understand, the man was shouting in English.

"What's he saying?!" She whispered loudly, trying to keep the fear from showing.

"He…he says they'll fire on us if Inuyasha doesn't give him the wagons," Kagome translated, "We're being used as hostages…"

"It all adds up then," Sango mused aloud, "They weren't hiding themselves very well to begin with, and a rockslide seemed too convenient. Somehow they targeted us and this entire thing was a trap to begin with…"

The panicking mule kicked their wagon and it edged forward slightly. The wood creaked as the water pushed against it, and the whole thing tilted slightly.

"It doesn't matter if they shoot or not, if we don't do something soon we'll be taken by the river anyway!" Kohana hissed, still trying to calm her baby.

"But if we lost a mule, how are we supposed to get across?" Kagome asked worriedly.

"One of us will have to get out of the wagon and help him," Sango responded.

"Get out and…with the other panicking mule? In the river? That's insane!" Sango whirled on Kohana, accusation written clear on her face, but before she could speak more shouting came from the banks and the girls turned to look out and see what was happening.

All of the men on the wagon trains were now lined up on the banks of the river, their weapons piled several feet behind them. Buckler looked absolutely livid, though his own rifle was out of his hands, and Rosemary gripped her husband's shoulder as she stared fearfully at the wagon in the river.

"They're letting you cross," Inuyasha shouted, though his voice came out as a snarl, "They can't have anything until you're safe." Blood covered his hand that continued to grip his injured shoulder, though he looked more pissed off than in pain. Behind him the leader of the thugs chuckled cruelly.

"So…that's it then? We lost?"

"If Inuyasha does anything they'll shoot at us," Kagome answered, "He's stuck…"

"So then we'll have to be ready to fight," Sango turned and began shoving several boxes away. A moment later she hoisted up a giant curved object, taller than herself. Kohana's eyes widened in astonishment. What on earth was that thing? Had she had it hidden in their wagon the whole time?!

"You brought your Hiraikotsu?" Kagome was surprised.

"I'd never leave it behind," Sango said, "And it's a good thing I didn't."

"Is that a giant boomerang?"

"Yes," Sango explained, "I should be able to take out a few of them with it. If we can manage to get them by surprise it'll give Inuyasha the moment he needs to spring his own attack."

"You'll need the cover off the wagon removed if you want to surprise them," Kagome pointed out, "They'll see you once we take it off."

"I know. The cover needs to come off quickly though, otherwise they'll see me before I strike."

"But they're expecting us to move, they'll still notice something is up if we don't."

"That's why one of you needs to go out there with the mule and help him along. The other needs to get the cover ready to go, and take it down when on my signal. If we want to make it out alive we're all going to need to work."

Kohana searched Sango's expression for any sort of motive, but instead she was met with the look of a warrior. With her strange giant weapon hoisted up behind her Sango was completely business, focused entirely on the task at hand she didn't seem to be wasting time on blaming or petty squabbles. Whether or not this woman held her responsible for the situation at hand, in order to survive she had no choice but to trust her, and she seemed to be approaching it as a professional.

Knowing that she didn't have time at the moment to try and figure out just who the hell Sango was, Kohana chose to follow her example and put everything aside except survival. For now they would all have to work together, and that was the only thing that mattered.

"Fine," she said, "I'll handle the mule then."

"What about Futeki?" Kagome asked, "You can't take him in the river with you."

"No, but I don't know how to undo the cover. You guys will have to watch him for me." Ignoring the pain in her heart as her child looked at her fearfully when she set him down; she turned and headed towards the front of the wagon.

The brown water of the river churned with the remaining mule's thrashings, while the other was complete dead weight. Dragging along the corpse would only hinder them, but with the other mule's kicking she wasn't sure she could even get in the water in the first place. If he kept thrashing like that, he'd wear himself out, and then they'd really be sunk. There was no way she could haul this wagon in alone.

Remembering how Sango and the other train drivers communicated with their animals she clucked her teeth and made shushing noises. The mule turned its ears towards her, though it continued to jerk wildly. She sat at the edge of the wagon, continuing to talk to the animal, as she hesitantly reached forward. Once her palm rested on the flank of the mule, the animal jerked its head back, though the harness prevented it from turning to look at her. She never quit speaking to it and continued to hold her palm there, and slowly the mule began to calm. When she thought it was safe enough, she slid into the water between it and the dead one.

Ignoring the sudden chill from the cold water, and the watching eyes of everyone on the far bank, she set to work releasing the dead mule from its harness. Keeping one hand on the wounded mule to calm it, she reached with the other to undo the buckles. The river water made everything slippery, and several times her thumb slipped just before the buckle released. It was only when she tasted blood that she realized she was biting her lip. She took a deep breath, trying not to let her mind wander to the fact that there were several guns pointed at her or that the water was up to her neck and her feet weren't touching the bottom.

After several tries, at last the rear buckle unfastened. She slid forward and began to work on the buckle behind its shoulders. The water continued to rush on by, but this one proved to be much easier. Once everything was undone, all that remained was getting the harness over the corpse's head and getting the other animal to swim to shore.

The wagon suddenly lurched forward and began to float downstream. The remaining mule began to panic again, and all Kohana felt was a sharp pain in her side as suddenly she was shoved completely underwater by one of its thrashing hooves. Instinctively she screamed, but when water entered her lungs she panicked. Her hands flew forward, hoping to grab anything, and when she grabbed the harness of the living mule she held on for dear life. With a mighty tug she pulled herself up and coughed when the broke the surface again.

She was vaguely aware of Kagome and Sango shouting to her from within the wagon, and she shook her head to clear the wet hair from her face. The desperate animal she clung to was swimming for dear life, but its efforts were in vain as the wagon continued to be swept downstream. With hooves still thrashing beneath her, she still had enough sense of mind to pull herself onto the back of the frightened animal before she was struck again.

There was another shout from the shore, and something flew towards them. It landed less than a foot away from her, and when she saw that it was the end of a rope she grabbed on. On the other end held Buckler and several other men from their train, apparently allowed by the bandits to rescue them. Quickly Kohana tied her end of the rope to the mule's harness before they floated too far away. Confident that it was secure she merely looked to the men and gave a shout.

Buckler nodded, before yelling a 'heave', as the men all pulled at once. Again he yelled, and the men began pulling in rhythm. Little by little, with them pulling and the mule swimming, the wagon moved forward. Kohana felt it when the mule's legs hit ground, and the wagon rose behind them as it came out of the river. It wasn't until they were almost completely out of the water when she heard the voice behind her.

"Kohana," Kagome hissed, "Get down!" And she barely had a second to flatten herself against the mule before the wagon cover behind her was suddenly ripped off.

"Hiraikotsu!" Sango shouted behind her, and the giant boomerang flew out, knocking into several surprised bandits before they even knew what hit them. The boomerang returned to its owner, and effortlessly she caught it.

Angry, the bandits grabbed for their guns to return fire, but without the wagon stranded in the river they had lost their hostages. Those on the train had dropped their guns, but they were far from weaponless.

"Blades of Blood!" Inuyasha shouted from his side of the river, and as he ripped his claws from his bleeding shoulder several red arcs flew through the sky, throwing the leader right off of his horse as his men began to return fire, but their guns were no match for the angry half demon who single handedly began to decimate their numbers with his claws.

Buckler didn't need a gun as he charged forward and landed a hairy fist smack into the face of one of their attackers. Several of their men charged with their fists as well, and Rosemary brandished a knife towards anyone who approached her wagon. The bandits had no opportunity to fire because Sango's Hiraikotsu flew again and continued to take them down.

Kagome, holding Futeki, took the opportunity to jump out of the wagon and go to Kohana, ducking to avoid fire.

"Are you all right?!" She asked, as she pressed a hand against the injured mule to help steady it. The waterlogged mother coughed and nodded, though she winced as pain returned to her side when she slid off of the back of the mule. Futeki fearfully reached for his mother, and she took him from Kagome before the two ran to duck behind their wagon to avoid the fight.

Hiraikotsu flew by once more as Sango dashed up the slope and physically entered battle. Clearly in her element she swung the heavy weapon about as if it were nothing, taking down her foes with ease. Whereas the men fighting were brawling sloppily, with Sango it almost seemed like a graceful dance.

"What…what on earth is she?" Kohana was astonished. Kagome smiled.

"That's how she was raised," the miko said, "I don't know all of the details myself, and it really isn't my place to say, but Sango's not from an ordinary village…"

Before Kohana could respond they heard a splash in the river behind, and turned to see a bandit on the far side pointing his pistol at them. There was a flash of red, and before he could even pull the trigger he was flying aside as Inuyasha's fist collided with his face. Golden eyes snapped in their direction, and in a single bound the hanyou leapt over the river and landed beside them.

"Kagome, are you ok?" He asked as he reached for her looking for injuries.

"I'm fine," she responded, "Nothing happened to me. Kohana was the one who got us across, and Sango's fighting them off."

There was another yelp, and the three of them peered around the wagon. By this point the bandits realized that they were no match for their wagon train and the mysterious woman who tossed around a giant boomerang like it was nothing. Those who weren't lying on the ground unconscious or wounded had begun to turn tail and flee, leaving behind horses and weapons. The bank behind them, after dealing with Inuyasha's defense, was completely barren of standing enemies.

The wagon train was victorious.

As this realization spread across their numbers so did a wave of excitement and they began to cheer and holler. Inuyasha finally realized how closely he was holding Kagome, and instantly jumped away pretending not to look flustered, missing her slight look of disappointment. Rosemary leapt out of her wagon and ran to her husband, embracing him in relief. Sango set down her Hiraikotsu and took a moment to catch her breath.

Once their celebrating was done the train began to assess their damage. Miraculously, other than two more mules, none of them died. That did not mean they were unscathed: Inuyasha, Buckler, and several of the men sported minor bullet wounds, Sango's cheek was bleeding where a shot had grazed her, and Kohana's side suffered from where the mule kicked her. When they had a moment Kagome gave her side a look-over, and again luckily nothing was broken. There would however be a massive bruise and pain for several days, but comparatively that was something to be thankful for.

The bandits that had been left behind, five in total including their leader, where quickly rounded up by the sheriff and roped together by their ankles and feet, after being stripped of all their weapons. Inuyasha claimed that he had plenty of room in the jail to house them, and the town was only a little over a day away at this point. Room would be made in one of the wagons to carry them, and it would be heavily guarded for the remainder of the trip. Once this whole supply mission was through, Inuyasha swore that he'd set to work hunting down the rest of their comrades.

Rosemary, who out of kindness began to tend to their wounds, under the watch of her husband and another man, began to notice something peculiar about each one of the bandits. She brought it to Mr. Hawkes' attention, and he was quick to summon the sheriff back over.

"What's this about," Inuyasha grumbled, and paused to let the Hawkes show him. They ripped up the sleeves of the bandits, and each one of them sported the same scar-like tattoo: a spider. As Inuyasha stared at it his eyes widened, an angry scowl covering his features.

"Where did you get this," he demanded, shaking one of the bandits, pointing to their arm, "What does this stand for?!"

The bandit's response was to spit in his face, and the growling sheriff had to be pulled off of him before he could cause any further wounds that would need to be tended. He was promised all the time in the world to interrogate them when they returned, but for now they all needed to focus on getting home first.

"Doesn't make sense," Inuyasha growled to himself, "They're all human, they couldn't…"

"What doesn't make sense?" Kagome asked approaching him "Is everything ok?" Inuyasha looked at her, and by his expression she could tell that something deeply troubled him. A moment later his face returned to its usual frown and he looked away.

"It's nothing," he brushed her off, "Don't worry about it."

"Inuyasha…" Kagome's hands went to her hips, but before she could say anything else he leapt away and said something about the rest of the work they needed to do before they could get going. Hiding her hurt expression, Kagome decided to let him be.

The task at hand now was getting the remainder of the wagons across the river. While the train had lost three mules, and the wounded one could no longer pull, they had managed to capture a couple of the horses left behind by the bandits, and when Inuyasha offered to loan his mount, they were able to replace all the empty harnesses. Several hours later, when the last wagon made it across safely, they decided that they needed a rest and be done travelling for the day, and went upstream a ways to set up camp and start fixing dinner.

The wagons were circled tighter around that night, and several of the men volunteered to patrol with their guns, lest the remaining bandits return and attack again. They didn't see hide or tail of them, but out here it was better to be extra cautious than to be taken advantage of a second time.

"Careful little one," Kohana instructed her son as they sat against their wagon that night, "Mama can't move so well right now." After eating dinner, Futeki had as much energy as ever and was ready to play. She was worried that the battle might have scarred him somehow, but amazingly he was bouncing all over the place and acted as if nothing had happened. Even now the little hanyou's resilience continued to surprise her.

"'Cause where you got kicked?" He asked and she nodded.

"Yes. Mama's side hurts, so she can't play with you tonight. Other people were hurt too, so you'll have to find a quiet game to play. Why don't you see if you can find any flowers in the grass here?" For once the child complied and picked a spot close to her and began gently clawing through the grass, occasionally sniffing around, though he never wandered too far.

Content at last to finally have a night of peace, her head began to fall back as her eyelids slowly drooped.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" A voice broke her out of her sleepy state, and she looked up. It was Sango.

"Uh…yes. Sure," She said, hoping to mask her surprise as the other woman took a seat next to her. The two of them sat there in silence, Kohana really unsure as to what was going on.

"Forgive me," Sango spoke at last, "I thought you had something to do with the bandits when they were following us, so I refused to believe Kagome. If I had known that you and your son would have been in direct danger because of this, I wouldn't have misjudged you. I'm sorry."

Kohana was speechless for several long moments. For the past nearly a week she had pegged Sango as a silent, proud, no-nonsense type, and here she was apologizing to her out of nowhere.

"I…er…it's fine," she stammered, "Don't worry about it. I mean, I was grumpy and quiet, so I never really gave you any reason to trust me…"

"Thank you…for pulling us in," Sango went on, "I didn't really expect you to willingly risk yourself out there like that."

"Ah well…I had to. I mean, we might not have survived, and I already owe Kagome so much for taking us in, I couldn't just…let her do it. Had to pull my own weight somehow…"

"I see," Sango nodded, though her mouth curved up in a smile.

"…Besides, you were the one who saved the day. It was your idea that saved us, and then you ran out there and fought them off with your…Hiraikotsu, was it? The wooden thing?"

"It…it's actually made of bone," Sango said, suddenly becoming hesitant.

"…Bone?"

"Yes…my village…where I'm from, we…specialize in…unique…weapons."

It was clear that she didn't want to talk too much about it, and Kohana decided not to press the issue. The two of them sat there for a while after that, watching the toddler tumble about in the grass in his own little game, and strangely they were able to converse, though it was only small talk after that. Eventually Sango rose and announced that she was going to bed, and Kohana bid her goodnight.

She couldn't explain it but somehow at that moment her heart felt…lighter. In a way. As if one of the many weights on her chest had let up just a little.

She still couldn't be entirely sure she had made the correct decision in joining this train, but after today's events she couldn't deny that in her life definite progress was made. It would be a while still before she knew just in which direction.


	3. Youkai

AN: So I was hoping to have this chapter up before July ended, but I guess I'm a day short. I'll still count this as my July chapter and try to have another one up before August ends. I'll be getting ready to move into my new apartment, so I don't know how much that will cut into my writing time but I'll do my best. I would also like to quickly thank my reviewers and readers, your encouragement means a lot to me and helps keep me going. It gives me hope that I might actually finish this fic.

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It became nearly impossible to ignore the unrest within the village. For the past several weeks rumors about the government had flowed; a river whose current only grew stronger. A big change was about to occur that would affect everything, even unimportant tiny farming villages hidden within the mountains such as theirs. This was something that would change the entire country.

Being a lowly farming girl, much like the rest of her village, Kohana never really paid that much attention to politics. She knew the basics: the Shogun was in power, all the lords of the lands served him, and all the samurai served their lords, so on and so forth until the very bottom where the farmers provided the rice for everyone. That was her job, to help provide rice for her country until her parents found her a husband to which she should bear several sons who would all continue the rice farming tradition. Though she was at the bottom of society's chain, her duty to her village was very important and each person had to do their share to keep the country as a whole going.

Naturally when the rumors began to spread through and suddenly everyone was talking about the government it was enough to give her pause. She knew vaguely of the situation in Edo about the Black Ships and Commodore Perry, but that had been years ago and hadn't really concerned any of them much. Now suddenly everyone is up in arms, all concerned about a power struggle between the Shogun and the Emperor. She had no idea for certain what was going on, and felt as though she should pay attention to the gossip, but she often found that her mind was elsewhere…

It had been over a month since that youkai, Sesshomaru, had appeared in the forest. He never returned to their village, but somehow Kohana couldn't keep her mind from him. Her mind was buzzing with questions, just who was he? Where did he come from? Was he ok now? Often, when she had free time, she would sneak back into the forest and return to the spot where Rin found him, but to no avail. It was almost as if he had never been there, like a dream that had only existed in her mind. If it weren't for the changes that occurred in Rin she could almost believe that the entire thing had never happened.

Thankfully the child had not reverted back to silence at Sesshomaru's sudden disappearance. She hadn't been happy about it, but her days of near muteness seemed over. She talked more to Kohana, usually about Sesshomaru, but it was still progress. Rin had just as many questions as the older girl, though her outlook always had a trace of optimism.

"Where did he go? Do you think he's coming back?" Rin would ask Kohana as she worked her way through the rice field.

"I'm not sure, but a human village really isn't a place he should frequent."

"I think he'll come back."

"Oh? And why do you think that?"

"I just think he will." Rin would always say such things, twirling a flower between her fingers and giggling. Kohana found it very hard not to smile around Rin, her cheer was infectious. The little girl still had few friends within the village, most of the other children remembered only the frightened mute outsider who was suddenly forced upon them, but if they only stopped and look they would be able to see the bright young girl was beginning to shine again.

Sesshomaru may have only been there for a short amount of time but his influence had been enough to spark the change that this little girl needed. If anything, Kohana was grateful for that and could stay otherwise content. Even if the others refused to try, she would do her best to try to nurture and encourage this newfound brightness.

One evening, as the two girls were returning from the rice fields they noticed a crowd had gathered in the village right outside their tiny ryokan. It was impossible to ignore it, so for curiosity's sake Kohana stopped to get a peek at the commotion, Rin pausing at her feet.

The object of everyone's curiosity appeared was a man staying at the inn. Nobody recognized him, and in a village that size there wasn't anyone who lived there that didn't know everyone. Aside from his expensive looking kimono he carried two swords at his side and held himself with a regal air. Most who saw assumed he was samurai, which made his appearance in their village all the more confusing.

Beyond his appearances though, it was his heated discussion with one of the villagers that seemed to draw the village in.

"You're saying it's that bad, huh?" One of the older men of the village asked.

"The Shogun has never been too concerned with the safety of the people," the man responded, his low voice almost like silk, "As we speak he is preparing his forces to help prevent him from having to relinquish what little power he has left. Villages such as yours will be forgotten and left to fall to ruin."

"Aren't you samurai?" Another villager asked, "Shouldn't you be serving the Shogun?"

"I come from a line of samurai, but I believe the time of the Tokugawa is over. The Shogun has already shown his weakness by allowing foreigners to impose their will upon Japan. Now not only do other nations see us weak, but threats from inside as well are preparing to attack."

"Inside?" Came a frightened whisper from the crowd.

"What's he talking about?"

"Is war about the break out?"

"Potentially," the stranger continued, "But not only between humans. The youkai of this land have always preyed upon us. Now that they've seen the weakness of our government it's only a matter of time before they band together and strike."

"Youkai?!"

"Impossible! It's been years since any demons have come close to this village!"

"I thought they were vanishing…"

"I don't suppose any of you have left your village in a while, but you are not as safe as you think. The roads, the forests, even the mountains that surround you are full of youkai. On my way here I've seen clouds of darkness forming at almost every corner. The youkai are building strength and their first targets will be little villages that are too secluded or small for the shogunate to protect, much like yours."

Panic began to bubble among the crowd as their voices rose in a frightened chatter.

"Demons are coming to kill us!"

"This can't be true; they haven't preyed on villages in over two hundred years!"

"Don't believe me?" The stranger wasn't quitting, "I'm sure you'd have to look no further than the forests around your fields to find evidence of youkai. They're already a lot closer than you think…"

Kohana gulped as her face paled slightly. The way this guy spoke and behaved was already giving her the creeps, but now his words were hitting way to close to home. She felt a tug at her yukata, and looked down to see Rin's frightened face; the younger girl was having the same thoughts. Nodding, Kohana took the girl's hand.

"Come on," she whispered, "I think we've heard enough of this." Quietly the two edged their way to the back of the crowd and turned to walk off. Throwing one last glance over her shoulder Kohana happened to make eye contact with the stranger. As he looked at her his mouth turned up in an almost predatory smirk. A shiver ran up her spine and she herded Rin away from the crowd as quick as possible.

That night as she lay in her hut she couldn't keep her mind from buzzing about what she had heard. That samurai certainly wasn't all that he appeared, he must've had his own motives for coming to their village and stirring up the crowd as he did, but what if there was some truth to what he was saying? What if the demons were preparing to attack small villages?

What if…Sesshomaru had something to do with it? He was a demon, and it was strange that he ended up not far from their village to heal his wounds. Had he been attacking another village when he was wounded? Was he planning on attacking theirs next?

_No,_ she shook her head trying to shake her thoughts, _If that were so he would've done it already. I mean, he had plenty of opportunity to kill me or Rin and he didn't. That has to count for something, right?_ Nodding to herself, she held her eyes closed wishing for sleep, refusing to believe that she had mistakenly harbored the destruction of her home.

The next morning the stranger was gone, having only stopped in their village to spend the night, but the ill feeling that he brought stayed behind. People were beginning to look both ways everywhere they went; even the slightest of noises of disturbances would send them into a panic. Kohana did her best to ignore it, but as she went about her day she often caught herself nervously glancing to the forest.

Several days passed like this, but nothing happened. When a week had gone by the villager's fear began to abate, and by the second week the warning was dismissed as folly. People were still up in arms about whether the shogunate would stabilize, but it slowly seemed that an upheaval of the human government wouldn't cause any youkai to attack them.

It had been a particularly sunny day before the clouds started to form. Even though summer was over it had still been unusually hot that day, so the idea of a cooling rain was welcomed by all the villagers. Once the sky grew dark everyone headed back towards their homes, an unspoken agreement that they could all take a break from the rice fields. It wasn't until they heard the screams that they knew something was wrong.

The skies let loose, but it wasn't rain that descended upon the village. Hundreds of monsters fell down at once, disgusting beasts sporting pointed gnarled fangs and claws. The woman who screamed gave the others little warning of the attack and in mere moments the first youkai to hit the ground latched onto her throat and silenced her instantly. The others flooded behind it and in seconds the entire village erupted in screaming turmoil.

Kohana had been with a group of other field workers when the demons first hit, and had no choice but to turn and run with them or else get trampled. When a youkai dove for them, the person next to her tried to leap out of the way, knocking into Kohana and sending her flying into the nearby rice paddy. She yelped as she tumbled face-first into the muddy water, but managed to roll just in time to see the demon tackle the person who knocked her, blood flying into the air.

Fear gripped her as her mouth opened in horror. She remained paralyzed as the villager beneath the youkai screamed; the most horrendous inhuman sound she had ever heard. The others had run off, not bothering to help their comrade and in seconds he was finished. The one-eyed youkai whipped its bloodied face towards Kohana and bared its fangs gleefully.

It took her a second for her brain to register that she was the next target, and suddenly she was screaming as she back-pedaled through the mud, brown water splashing into the air. The youkai saw its opportunity and leapt, just as Kohana's hand hit something hard. Not even thinking she gripped the object and swung up at the monster, hearing a sharp thud as she managed to smack the youkai away just before it reached her.

Gripping her newfound weapon she realized she had been fortunate enough to grab a hoe, probably dropped by someone else when they fled in panic. She used it as a prop and boosted herself up out of the paddy, ignoring the sticky mud that now coated her. A throaty hiss warned her that her attacker was still there, and she turned just in time to swing at it again.

This time the youkai caught the end of her hoe in its mouth and tried to jerk it away from her, though with adrenaline pumping Kohana managed to hold on. Undeterred the demon shook its head, causing her to stumble and its claws reached forward, scratching her arms. She yelped in pain and the demon was able to yank her weapon out of her hands and tossed it. Once more it prepared to leap, when suddenly its face was impaled by a pitchfork.

Kohana gasped and jumped back, just as the village man who rescued her continued to drive his pitchfork further into the face of the youkai. The thing hissed and writhed in pain, but in a few moments it went silent. The villager ripped his pitchfork out, a horrible sucking noise followed as the insides of its head flew out with his farming tool. Kohana tried not to vomit.

"Run to the mountain and go North, we're gathering next to the military outpost up the road," the villager said as he picked up the hoe and tossed it to Kohana, "Go now and don't look back!"

"What about my parents?!" She asked, "Is everyone going there?"

"They already left! Don't wait on anyone, go!" With that the villager ran off with his pitchfork, preparing to attack another demon with it.

Kohana turned and surveyed her village. Several of the huts were now in flames, smoke and unearthly screams filling the darkened sky. Demons flew in and out of the massacre, though now villagers were fighting back with farming tools and flaming logs as women and children fled the scene. Even so, death and destruction were consuming the area, and Kohana almost sank to her knees in despair.

"Help!" A faint cry came from her right, breaking Kohana's paralysis. She turned just in time to see Rin disappearing into the forest with a demon hot on her tail.

"Rin!" She cried out, feeling her stomach drop in terror. Gripping her hoe tightly she gave chase, splashing her way through the rice paddy and up the slope into the woods after them.

The air still smelled of smoke here and the forest seemed darker than usual, but she could see the path of trampled underbrush where Rin had fled and followed it. Her lungs burned and her legs ached but she kept up the chase, refusing to think of what could happen if she didn't catch up. She continued to call out Rin's name as she charged through the foliage, using the hoe to take out anything in her way. When a sudden scream echoed through the forest she picked up speed, only to stumble over a root and land in a clearing just through a thorn-bush.

Groaning, she began to hoist herself up with the hoe again but was instantly halted at the sight before her. Rin lay sprawled on the ground as the youkai in pursuit of her dug its teeth into her side, one of its scythe-like claws having already slashed open her bloodied throat. The little girl tried to cry out in agony, but the only sound she made was little gurgles as blood pooled from her mouth. Her tear-stained eyes flashed in recognition as she looked over at Kohana, before clouding over an instant later as her whole body went limp.

"No…" All the blood drained from Kohana's face, "No…Rin! NO!" With a sudden roar she leapt forward at the demon, brandishing her hoe high in the air. The beast growled at her, but refused to let go of its prey until the very last second when it avoided a blow to the head. It turned swiftly, slashing one of its claws across Kohana's shin, but her blood was boiling and she barely registered the pain. Continuing to yell she swung again and again, as the youkai continued to dodge.

Somehow, in her rage she managed to land a hit on the thing and sent it flying to the ground. Not wasting a moment she turned the hoe towards its head and smacked through its skull. The thing howled, and she raised her hoe up and struck again. Again and again she swung down, crushing the thing's head and sending blood flying everywhere. Only when the demon stopped twitching did she throw her hoe down, panting from exertion and face twitching in anger.

When she turned back to face Rin however her anger evaporated instantly, and her face crumpled in a sob. She fell to her knees and crawled over to the child, gingerly touching her wounded side and placing a hand at her throat. There was nothing.

Rin was dead.

A slow wail escaped her mouth as Kohana lifted Rin into her arms and held her against her chest. Suddenly the weight of everything came crashing down, and the tears poured from her eyes. She rocked back and forth as she wept into the hair of the deceased orphan, not even entirely sure where she was anymore.

"How…Rin you…I'm so…I'm so sorry I couldn't…and…the village…everyone…everything's gone," she continued to babble incoherently as she sobbed. How had this happened? One minute it was sunny, and the next everything went straight to hell. And Rin, she had just begun to open up again, finally acting like a child again, and now…

How did this happen? Where did this come from?

_How?!_

She didn't know long she knelt there and wept, but it felt like an eternity. Rin's body had long grown cold, and the mud was beginning to cake. Kohana's leg stung, but she didn't care. A sudden calm descended upon the clearing, and when she felt something standing over them she was certain that death himself had come to greet her.

"Set the girl down and move aside."

Confused, she opened her red-rimmed eyes only to be met by blinding white. She blinked a few times until her eyes adjusted and she was able to recognize the figure that towered above her. She gasped.

"Sesshomaru! You…" She couldn't believe the sight before her, their previous meeting feeling as though it existed in another life. The golden eyed youkai gazed down at her before he spoke again.

"The girl. Set her down and step away."

"But…Rin she," her voice began to break again, "…she's dead there isn't any-"

"I know. Step away."

She didn't know why, it may have been the look he gave her, but for some reason she decided to listen. Gently she lay Rin back down on the ground and backed up a few paces. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes as he stared down at the body of the deceased girl, as if looking for something. Slowly he drew one of the swords at his side, and Kohana briefly began to panic that he would mutilate Rin's body further. Before she could react though Sesshomaru swung down the sword and Kohana winced at a sudden flash of blue light.

A moment later and the light was gone. Sesshomaru calmly sheathed his sword, and Kohana glanced around seeing nothing changed. She opened her mouth to ask what had happened, but froze instantly when Rin started coughing.

"Kohana?" The girl glanced over at her, voice hoarse, "What happened?"

"R-rin…" Kohana stuttered, nearly in shock, "You…you're talking…h-how is this possible?"

"The girl's life has been restored." Sesshomaru stated. Unsure, Kohana reached forward. The blood on Rin's neck had dried but the wound was gone, just the same as the bites on her side. In fact, Rin was completely scratch free and blinked up at Kohana with eyes that slowly gained strength.

"Rin…you're alive!" Once again tears fell from the older girl's eyes and she grabbed the child in an embrace, completely overcome by the miracle she had just witnessed. The little girl seemed lost at first, but hugged the older girl back anyway. After a moment Kohana remembered the youkai with them and turned to face him.

"I knew you would come back," A bright smile slowly formed on Rin's face as she looked up at Sesshomaru.

"Yes," Kohana was breathless, "I don't know how I can ever thank you fo-"

"Don't think I did it for you," Sesshomaru cut her off, "I was merely testing my sword, nothing more."

At first she was stunned by the cruelty of his words, but a she looked closer she could've sworn she saw him…smirking? It was then Kohana realized he had just thrown her own words right back at her, and in his own way he was repaying her for looking after him when he was wounded without having to lose face. Even now this demon's pride came first, and somehow this combined with the sudden feeling of weightless relief Kohana started laughing.

Sesshomaru's smirk, not that it was very visible to begin with, vanished and Rin looked confused. Letting her laughter die down, Kohana stood and helped Rin to her feet. When she was certain that the little girl was stable enough to stand on her own she turned and walked up to Sesshomaru.

"Well then," Kohana said, eyes sparkling, "It must've been fate that brought you here. Seeing as I have no way to speak to him, I'll just have to thank you in his stead." At this she bowed low and held it out longer than what a simple 'thank you' would call for, showing deep gratitude and respect.

"Hn," Sesshomaru said, though he didn't sound annoyed, "Do as you see fit." He turned and began to walk away, though he halted at the edge of the clearing. He looked back at the girls.

"Your village has fled north. We should be able to reach them before sunrise."

_We?!_ Kohana was unable to keep the stunned look from her face, as Sesshomaru turned and set off again. His pace was slow enough for the both of them to keep up with.

"Come on then!" Rin chirped grabbing Kohana's hand, "Let's follow him!"

"…Right," Kohana said after a moment smiling, "Sesshomaru will lead us out."

The three of them together set off into the forest.

* * *

"Kohana. Kohana, wake up we're nearly there!"

"Huh, wha?" The brown-haired girl sat up, holding her head. Her mind was fuzzy, wasn't her village in danger? And Rin, hadn't she…?

"Mama, get up!" A little voice shouted as tiny clawed hands suddenly grabbed her arm. In an instant her eyes were open, and everything came flooding back to her. She was in the covered wagon with her son; Inuyasha had pushed the train to start moving very early that morning to make the last leg of their journey, hoping to reach the town by afternoon.

Kohana had slept little the past two nights, the events from the other day's raid causing her to relive the attack on her village, a nightmare that had happened ages ago. This was the only explanation as to why she was able to fall asleep in the moving wagon; the vehicle suddenly lurching over the terrain as if to emphasize its annoying existence causing her to hit her bruised side again. She hissed and winced in pain, longing to be as far away from the stupid vehicle as possible.

"Kohana," Kagome called again and gestured excitedly from the front wagon flaps, "Come look at this!" Nodding, the young mother sat up and crawled to the front of the wagon. Kagome and Sango leaned to the side so she could poke her head out.

"…Woah…" Kohana was at a loss for words. Ever since coming to America she had seen mostly dry hills and desert flatlands, she never expected to find a sight like this. The wagon train just crested a hill, and before her lay a vast expanse of snow-capped peaks outlined by the clear blue sky that hid nothing. The bases of the mountains were coated in thick pine forests; not far in the distance a silver lake sparkled, mirroring the clear heavens above. Patches of wildflowers sprouted around the valley below, and a white-faced eagle soared above. The entire place almost seemed unreal.

"…It almost reminds me of home…" Kohana remarked, remembering the mountains of Japan that she was raised in. Kagome and Sango both smiled wistfully at her comment, and while these mountains looked nothing like the ones from her birth land she could still see why the other two girls had chosen to move here. Futeki crawled into her lap, and she held the flap open for the boy to see.

"Over there," Kagome pointed to the base of the closest snow-capped peak, "We're almost home." Kohana narrowed her eyes and peered out to see, eventually noticing the wooden structures of the little town gathered at the base, smoke piping out of several of the roofs.

"_Dogtooth Peak."_

"Huh?" Kohana glanced at Kagome confused, knowing she had said something in English.

"It's the name of the town," Kagome explained, "_Dogtooth Peak_. It's named after the mountain it's sitting under."

"_Dogu…tsusu…piku…" _Kohana tested the sound aloud several times as Kagome and Sango corrected her pronunciation until she suddenly recognized the words, "Oh wait, like a dog's tooth?"

"Right," Kagome nodded, "Kind of funny, considering who their sheriff is." Sango and Kohana threw Kagome a look before all three erupted in a fit of giggles.

"Well," Kohana glanced down at her son, "Let's hope that's a good sign for us then…" The little hanyou just smiled at his mother and thumped his snowy tail against her leg.

The four of them sat at the front of their wagon and watched the scenery as they made their way through and less than two hours later the entire train was passing under the entry way on the front streets of the town. Several of the townspeople had noticed the train approaching, and by the time they entered a crowd gathered to welcome them home. Women and children rushed out to greet their menfolk that had been gone for weeks, the men of the train jumped out of their wagons excitedly.

"They're back! They're home!" Cried the town as an infectious cheer spread among them. Inuyasha frowned from atop his horse; they were so close to the drop off point but the crowd around prevented them from moving any further.

Several faces appeared, Sango and Kagome greeting them warmly. Kohana with Futeki had retreated back into the wagon, not entirely sure how react to all these people.

"Come on," Kagome urged her, "Come meet everyone." Kohana resisted for a moment, though with enough pushing Sango and Kagome had her out of the wagon. Several curious townspeople approached her, and Kohana fought the urge to flee. Even so, Kagome introduced her, and surprisingly when she introduced the hanyou child as their sheriff's nephew nobody reacted in fear or disgust. In fact several of them seemed to coo at the child, a few women reaching out to shake his tiny hand.

_They're…they're not afraid_ Kohana thought with awe. It was probably due to the fact that they all trusted Inuyasha already, so any relative of his would be seen as good in their eyes, but still. She couldn't remember the last time she had been around other people who hadn't instinctively reacted in disgust. Honestly it was…refreshing. Slowly she found herself smiling at these people, even if she could hardly understand them.

"Ladies," A voice suddenly called out, "You're back!" Kohana raised an eyebrow, recognizing the use of Japanese. Kagome and Sango gave each other a look.

"Kagome," Sango asked, "You didn't happen to warn her about…"

"No, I completely forgot," She replied sheepishly.

"Warn what? There's another Japanese person here?" Kohana asked. Before the others could answer her they were suddenly approached by a man, Japanese just like them. He didn't seem older than them, and wore his shaggy black hair in a small ponytail at the base of his neck. He wore western clothing, a purple button-up vest over a long-sleeved striped shirt and dark pants, and carried himself with an air of confidence.

"Hello Miroku," Kagome greeted the man as he approached them.

"Lady Kagome," He nodded to her, "Sango, I'm glad to see you've returned safely. It's almost been four weeks, I was starting to worry."

"We were held up a few times," Kagome said, "But Inuyasha took care of us and we made it safe."

"Yes, I'm glad the town could afford to send him with you," Miroku agreed. Suddenly he looked past the two girls and noticed Kohana, "And who might this be?"

"Uh, this is Kohana," Kagome said, "We found her out in the desert and decided to bring her with-" Miroku stepped forward and interrupted her.

"I see, a lovely desert flower plucked up and brought into the mountains," before Kohana could respond Miroku took one of her hands and held it gently in his. He looked her straight in the eye and smiled warmly.

"Tell me young miss, would you do me the honor of bearing my…." He looked down and noticed Futeki. The hanyou blinked up at him and frowned.

"You…already have a child."

"Yes, she does." Miroku suddenly yelped as Sango's Hiraikotsu collided with the back of his head. Kohana stepped back, shielding her boy from this man, just who the heck was he? And hadn't Sango's weapon still been in the wagon, how'd she get it out that fast?

"Come now, Sango," Miroku pleaded rubbing the back of his head, "I was only joking!"

"A joke's only worth repeating if it was at least funny the first time," Sango snipped, frowning angrily. Miroku regarded her for a moment before he started smiling again.

"Ah Sango, you're always so quick to chastise me," He chuckled, "How I've missed it." Before she could retort Miroku embraced her and Sango's face shot red.

"Wh-what are you doing?" She began to struggle against him, her blush becoming more luminescent every second "M-miroku, quit it!" Her fidgeting only seemed to encourage him, though it appeared that she wasn't fighting back as hard as she could have. It wasn't until his hand cupped her rear that Sango's blush vanished and her face snapped in rage. The resounding crack of her hand across his face echoed across the mountains.

"You pervert!" Sango was mad now, "I've barely been home for ten minutes, you couldn't even spare me that?!"

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself," the man laughed as he caressed the stinging hand print on his face. Sango continued to berate him, but nothing she said seemed to ruffle him in the slightest.

"Um," Kohana was beyond confused, and slightly worried, "What's going on?"

"Don't worry, this is normal," Kagome said. Kohana looked skeptical, but she did notice how none of the townspeople seemed to even bat an eyelash at the squabbling pair in the middle of the street.

"And another thing, how dare yo-…huh?" Sango paused mid-rant as a noise caught her attention, "…Kirara?"

There was a chirp, as a small two-tailed white cat with black markings appeared from behind a building. As soon as it spotted them the creature shot forward and leapt into Sango's arms. Laughing, Sango's mood completely changed as she held the small animal.

"Kirara, I've missed you! Did you protect the town while we were gone?" The cat mewed as if to answer her, and nuzzled against her shoulder purring.

"She patrolled the mountains every day, we haven't had a single incident the entire time," Miroku explained, and Sango smiled proudly.

"Oi," Inuyasha barked from atop one of the wagons, "In case you've all forgotten, we've still got a train of supplies that haven't been delivered yet!"

The festive mood died quickly, and everyone set to work pushing the supplies the last several yards of its journey. The drop off point was the town's general store, and as it turned out Miroku worked there under surveillance of a balding man with spectacles known as Mr. Mullin. Apparently, when Miroku had first wandered into Dogtooth Inuyasha had caught him swindling supplies out of the townspeople and imprisoned him. Miroku hadn't a penny to his name to repay everyone, and Mr. Mullin was having trouble running his store by himself, so somehow the man had talked his way out of jail and into employment of the general store until he earned back everything he took.

Or so the story went, according to Kagome. The whole incident had occurred before either she or Sango arrived in town.

"So," Miroku said as he directed the flow of supplies into the storage space in the back of the store, "The child is Inuyasha's nephew then?"

"Yes," Kagome nodded, looking down at the little hanyou who was on the ground curiously sniffing Kirara, "They were living out there alone in the desert, we couldn't just leave them." Kohana glanced at them from where she leaned against a wall, unable to help lift anything due to her injured side. She frowned but didn't say anything.

"I see, so Inuyasha does have a soft spot after all."

"That ain't how it happened," Inuyasha snapped as he walked by carrying several boxes, throwing an accusatory glance at Kagome. The young miko simply smiled back at him and he snorted before continuing on into the store.

_If Inuyasha has a soft spot, it's for one person alone, _Kohana thought, and by the knowing look Miroku had she was beginning to suspect that it was common knowledge.

"So where are they going to stay?" Miroku continued looking back to Kagome.

"Well I was hoping that Dr. and Mrs. Silburn wouldn't mind having her along with me and Sango," Kagome looked to Kohana, "I hope you don't mind. They're a very nice couple, I'm sure you'd love them."

"I…I don't want to impose on anyone," Kohana said nervously. Honestly the topic of her housing hadn't really been discussed before, and she hadn't really thought much of it. Mentally she kicked herself, just how far was she going to indebt herself to these people?

"If she's uncomfortable there, there is a spare room in my place above the store," Miroku offered.

"…I think we'll be fine with the girls." Kohana inched away from him slightly, momentarily forgetting about burdening the others. Kagome laughed nervously and Miroku exaggerated looking wounded, but the task of stocking the supplies grew busier and conversation ceased.

With everyone helping it took roughly over an hour for them to finish, and by the time they were done Kohana wondered how they had managed to fit so many supplies into one space. Dogtooth Peak though would not be starving this winter that much was certain. Once they finished Inuyasha left to take the captured bandits to jail, announcing that he'd begin hunting down their comrades first thing in the morning. Buckler also hurriedly left the group, saying that by sunrise he would head off into the mountains to do what fur trapping he could before the first snow-fall. Everyone else milled about and chatted for a bit but eventually they all dispersed, finally returning to their homes.

"Um," Kohana asked following Sango and Kagome as they made their way through the streets, "That Miroku guy, are you sure he's safe?"

"Miroku?" Kagome paused for a moment, "Don't worry about him, he's harmless." Kohana gave her a skeptical look, "If it helps any, he used to be a monk."

"…Bullshit." It was Kohana's turn to pause, though luckily Futeki in her arms was paying far too much attention to Kirara perched upon Sango's shoulder to have heard his mother curse.

"It's true," Kagome defended, "I don't know why he left Japan, but he said he was raised in a temple by another monk." Kohana frowned. The monk story would potentially explain the strange beads and glove she had seen on Miroku's right arm, but still.

"Some monk…"

"Miroku really isn't a bad person," Sango added, "He cares about others, and is hard-working when he needs to. If only he would control that hand of his…"

They turned a corner and walked down the next street some until they reached a wooden two-story house painted pale blue. A little garden grew along the front, and when the three of them reached the steps of the front porch, the door opened to show a smiling older woman who kept her grey hair up in a bun. She greeted the girls warmly in English, Sango and Kagome bowing politely in response.

Behind her appeared an old man with curly hair and a pointed beard with a grey that seemed to match the woman. He smiled and greeted the girls just as warmly, but after a moment gestured curiously to Kohana. Kagome responded and, Kohana guessed, explained what had happened, finding her in the desert and realizing her son was the sheriff's nephew and such. As she spoke the man quirked a lip as if in thought, but when she finished he looked to Kohana and then Futeki and smiled.

"Welcome," he said in Japanese though with a thick accent, surprising Kohana, "Please, enter my house." He held the door open for everyone to come inside, leading to a brightly colored entryway with several framed papers on the wall, all of them unreadable to the young mother. She did notice an oval portrait of a young woman in western clothing, and several of the frames held dried grasses and herbs. Before she could get lost in staring at everything, Kagome nudged her and pointed to a doorway to their left.

The group entered a room with several flower embroidered cushioned seats all facing a low wooden table in the center of the room. Bookshelves surrounded the seats, all full to the brim with leather-bound titles, none of with Kohana could decipher. In one corner of the room was a rather large globe, and in the other was an array of small stringed instruments. Again, she was almost lost in staring at everything until everyone took a seat and she too sat on one of the hard cushions, son fidgeting in her lap.

"Forgive my rudeness," the man said in English, which had to be translated by the other girls for Kohana's benefit, "I only speak little Japanese so I am unable to properly introduce myself. My name is Arthur Silburn, and this is my wife Mollie." He gestured to the old woman who nodded politely before leaving the room.

"…Nice to meet you," Kohana replied before introducing herself and her child. Her words were translated in return, and so the two were able to communicate.

"So, what brings a young woman like you so far from home?"

"Uh, well," Kohana paused a moment to come up with an answer, "You see, the situation in Japan isn't exactly…"

"It's become rather volatile, hasn't it?"

"…Well, yes…"

"I take it then that the Youkai Extermination Act is still in effect?"

Kohana's eyes widened, surprised that a foreigner would even know about that. Nearby Sango stiffened slightly, but she didn't say anything.

"Yes, as of three years ago it still was." The act had been passed by the Meiji government, calling for the absolute destruction of all oni, tengu, and every single youkai so that they could never plague humans again such as they had done under the Tokugawa Shogunate. Most humans were happy about it and thus far the act had been…successful.

"I see," Silburn laced his fingers in thought for a moment. His wife returned to the room with a tray of tea and snacks that she set on the table before them, taking a seat next to her husband. "Naturally, the Act directly affects you, was that your cause for leaving?"

"…Yes," Kohana nodded, not wanting to offer any more than necessary. The topic caused her pulse to pick up, and unconsciously she drew her son closer. Silburn picked up on her movement and chuckled softly.

"I apologize; I don't mean to pry into your affairs," he said, "this topic just happens to be my area of study. Allow me to explain myself," he went on after noting Kohana's confusion, "After receiving my doctorate I moved out West to study the plant and animal life. This area is far more untamed and wild than the East, and there are so many differences in the ecosystems. As I conducted my research though, I kept running in to creatures that weren't like the rest. Things that would vanish, eyes that would glow…"

"You see, this land has its spirits too, not unlike your youkai. Most people here don't notice them but the natives have for a long time. I'm no expert on their culture, but I do believe that their shamans are able to communicate with them, and for as long they can remember for the most part the spirits and the natives have co-existed in harmony."

"I've a few colleagues around the world who have noted similar creatures such as this, those who have been to Japan recounting tales of your youkai and how they're seen in an unfavorable light. We've traded letters, them recounting tales where youkai will attack humans, or a secret sect of humans dedicated to the art of slaughtering youkai. This struck me as curious, how is it that in Japan the spirits and humans were constantly affecting each other's lives, whereas here they seem to be able to co-exist?"

"When I heard rumors of the white-haired man in Dogtooth who had supernatural abilities, I packed up with my wife and moved here without a second thought. My suspicions were correct, though not only was this man a spirit, he was a youkai from Japan. The supposed human devouring beast from Asia was right here in America, only he was protecting this town from bandits and wild animals. He was doing such a good job that they gave him the title of Sheriff just to keep him here. Remarkable!"

"Naturally, I had to stay here; this was my rare opportunity to be in close vicinity of a youkai and to study him. It hasn't been easy; Inuyasha isn't always the most…agreeable person. But he's a good man, and he's been a major help to my research. These two girls too," he gestured to Kagome and Sango, "When I received a letter from one of my colleagues saying that two Japanese girls were in desperate need of housing in America until the situation caused by the Extermination Act calms down, my wife and I gladly accepted them. They've been such a delight, and so helpful to my understanding of Japanese life and culture."

Kagome blushed at having to translate this, unable to deny the praise at the moment. Sango's expression still remained stiff, but she too blushed slightly at his compliments.

"You see Ma'am," he looked back to Kohana, "After all my years of studying the spirits and cultures that surround them, I simply cannot agree with what's happening in Japan. Even if the two cannot get along, completely destroying all of their youkai is not the answer. Who knows what sort of global repercussions this sort of action has caused, and it's up to my research to be able stabilize humanity should anything happen. This is why I'm so happy you arrived."

"…Me?" Kohana was taken aback.

"Yes, don't you see? In Japan it's always been recorded that youkai are terrible human slaughtering beasts, and here you are mother to a half-demon son. This is such a rare opportunity, of course I've observed how Inuyasha interacts with the townspeople, and even Sango here and her friend Kirara."

The little cat perked up at the mention of her name, though she remained in Sango's lap.

_That explains the two-tails_, Kohana thought, feeling stupid that she hadn't come to that conclusion on her own.

"But you," Dr. Silburn went on, "The link between you and your son is much different than anything else I've been allowed to witness. I believe that humans and spirits are able to co-exist, and you are the biggest evidence I've encountered that supports that claim." He'd been growing ever more excited in his speech, and by this point he was sitting on the edge of his chair.

"With your permission, I want to be able to study your son."

"Uhh," Kohana was taken aback, feeling slightly uncomfortable and unsure how to answer such a strange request.

"I know it sounds strange, and I don't intend to be intrusive," he said, "But I just want to observe his development and behavior. Of course this will all be at your discretion; I promise I won't invade your privacy. In return you two will be allowed to stay here, there's another spare room upstairs that the two of you could share. We can even help you as well, my wife and I would be more than happy to teach you English or any other thing you wish to know about living here. I promise you won't regret it."

"Well," Kohana thought about it for a moment. She wasn't quite sure what this man meant by 'research' or what sort of effects that would have on her child. In fact this was the first time anyone had been so interested in him. Up until now she had only been met with fear and hatred, but this man…

She couldn't deny that his beliefs were naïve. She knew damn well just how ruthless and dangerous demons could be, and judging from how tight-lipped Sango was the other woman must be having similar thoughts. For as much good experience Kohana had with youkai, she had just enough bad experience to counter it, and honestly she had no idea whether humans and demons really could completely coexist peacefully. Dr. Silburn's cause was noble, but foolish.

She also couldn't ignore that winter was coming soon, and now she really had nowhere to go. Here she and Futeki were promised food and shelter; they wouldn't have to starve in the cold. They were also willing to properly teach her English, a skill she was in desperate need of developing if she wanted to stay in America. She could last a few months here at least, and if it got too bad she could always find some horse around town and sneak out in the middle of the night…

She looked down at her son who had been pretty fixated on Kirara for the most of the conversation, but had now turned his attention to their chair. He was completely unbothered by his change in surroundings, or the amount of people around him. She still worried about his future, but maybe it might not be impossible for them to live in a human town...

Kohana then glanced at Kagome who was looking at her hopefully. Sango too was looking at her waiting on her decision, and on her left Dr. and Mrs. Silburn patiently awaited her answer.

"I suppose," she said at last, "It couldn't hurt to stay a while…and help your research."

"Excellent!" Dr. Silburn couldn't contain his excitement and leapt up to shake her hand, "I promise you Ma'am you won't regret this!" Mrs. Silburn and Kagome behind him smiled.

_I hope so, _she thought as she returned his handshake. Even so, she now had a stable home and shelter for her child, and that was enough to give her some ease.


	4. Dogtooth

AN: So I've come to realize after going back to school that my original one chapter a month goal might be a little difficult for the time being. This does not mean that I've given up on this story, I still have plenty of ideas and know exactly where I'm going with it. I'm still aiming for a chapter a month, but it just might not always work out that way. School has to come first.

I'd also like to quickly thank my reviewers. Whenever I see that someone is enjoying my story it pushes me to keep writing so that I can give them more. You guys are awesome, thank you for cheering me on. Ok, story time now!

* * *

Inuyasha growled, frustrated. Aside from the scent of burnt gunpowder and dried blood he found no more clues, and the trail he was following became lost in the river. Even though the group that attacked them was entirely made of humans, those that got away managed to give him the slip.

"Dammit," he cursed, hating to admit defeat. Grudgingly he gave in and turned to head back towards town. He was without his horse but could easily outpace the animal on foot. Once everything was secured in Dogtooth last night he took off on his own to return to the scene of the attack, reaching his destination in under a few hours. It had been pointless though, he didn't find anything that he didn't already know and those that escaped covered their tracks and scent by riding through the river.

If it hadn't been for the stupid wagon train he could've taken off after the rest and followed them back to their base, but there was no way that he could have left the wagons to cross the river alone so soon after an attack. These humans couldn't last two seconds without him. Hell, he wasn't even sure how the town managed to spare him for a few weeks and stay standing every year just so he could go on and guard the supply trip. This year's trip had been the worst yet.

Inuyasha had fended off thieves from wagon trains before, but none of them were ever as coordinated or planned as the attack from these bandits. Not only that, but each of them bore the same mark on their arm, the spider-scar. That was what disturbed the sheriff the most. He recognized that mark, though he hadn't seen it in years, and never before in America.

It was the mark of a demon, one who went by the name of Naraku. Inuyasha's lip curled up in a snarl and he flexed his claws just thinking about him. Their fight started over fifty years ago, back when the hanyou still lived in his native country. Naraku was a vile bastard who preferred to use others to do his dirty work and had no second thoughts about turning people against each other.

_Kikyo…_

Inuyasha winced as he tried to push away his memories. Born a half demon he'd been ridiculed and hated since the day he was born. The first person to ever show him kindness had been a young priestess who, while initially mistrusting, saw him as not just a monster. They slowly grew close, and eventually became lovers.

It just so happened that the priestess Kikyo was also the guardian of a sacred jewel, something that could grant power to whoever had it. Naraku wanted the jewel and planned to trick Inuyasha and Kikyo into betraying each other. By the time they discovered the trap it was too late; Naraku had landed his killing blow on the priestess. She was able to force him away with her spiritual powers but wasn't able to heal herself. Kikyo ordered the jewel to be burned with her body, and they both vanished from this world together.

Enraged, Inuyasha swore vengeance against Naraku and began to hunt him down, tearing through villages and demon clans alike, but his enemy disappeared. The hanyou would have continued his hunt if his ass of a brother hadn't shown up and "deemed his actions impetuous" and drove him out of the country before he could cause any "permanent damage".

Inuyasha's original plan had been to kill Naraku and then himself so that he could avenge Kikyo and join her in the afterlife, but unless Naraku showed any signs of leaving Japan the young hanyou was stuck. He refused to die before avenging Kikyo, but he couldn't reach his enemy and so he was forced to wait.

Years passed, and eventually he found himself in the far west. Humans here gave him strange looks but they didn't fear him like they had in Japan, as long as he kept his ears covered most couldn't really see that he didn't just have an odd hair color or eyes. In fact, the humans here were so diverse that they were often too busy pointing out each other's differences to notice his.

Some people who lived in the cities had pale skin, while others were much darker. There were even groups of humans who lived in tents in the wilderness, away from the rest. Once, a group of these people saw Inuyasha without his hat and instead of running in fear they regarded him as a 'holy spirit of the land'. This land had its own youkai too, probably the 'spirits' that the humans in the wilderness worshiped, though they weren't constantly at war with each other and often chose to just stay away from humans and keep to their own.

Strange as this land was, the hanyou slowly began to admit that he liked it. It was peaceful and open; as long as he kept to himself nobody bothered him. Learning English had been a pain, but his extended lifespan allowed him to just simply live and learn by being immersed in the culture. Somehow along the way he ended up defending a small mining town from a band of thieves, one thing led to another and pretty soon he was given the post of sheriff. Sure, the townspeople could be annoying and needy, but it was way better than being chased out of town just because of his heritage.

It wasn't until Kagome arrived that he was reminded of his duty to Kikyo. His heart nearly stopped beating when he first saw her; it was as though Kikyo herself had come back to life. While Kagome and Kikyo were both similar in appearance and scent, and they were both miko, Inuyasha learned something very important very fast: Kagome was _not_ Kikyo.

This girl was stubborn, and stupid. Kikyo had always had a sense of grace and intelligence, and her powers of purification were legendary. Given a bow and arrow, Kagome couldn't hit the broad side of a barn if she tried. The only miko trick she did know was how to bind Inuyasha with the stupid necklace that threw him to the ground every time she yelled 'sit', and even the girl was too stupid to know how to undo her curse.

She was always throwing herself into danger too, even when it had nothing to do with her. He'd lost count of how many times he'd had to jump in and rescue her from thieves or wild animals, just because someone else told her their child was missing or they'd had something stolen. It was like she did it on purpose, just to torment him.

Not only that, whenever Dogtooth sent him on missions to other towns, such as the yearly supply run, she would volunteer to go with him and the town would approve! They claimed that Kagome could 'keep him in line' and 'prevent him from offending anyone with his lack of manners'. It was a damned conspiracy, all of them!

The worst of all though were those moments when she would look at him, really look at him, and her face would light up and smile. Her anger? He could deal with that. Yelling, Screaming, 'Sits', he knew how to respond to that. But her smile…Nobody ever looked at him like that. Usually when people stared it was either with fear or confusion or hate, but Kagome…

Her smile caused his heart to race and his body to warm up, and that he did _not_ know how to respond to. Inuyasha was not used to being smiled at like that, as if that person looked at him and didn't even see that he was a hanyou, they just saw him. That feeling was confusing and strange, and he didn't know what to do, and so more often than not he would say something mean or turn away from her before she could realize just what sort of power she held over him.

Kagome was a hazard.

Inuyasha leapt over a fallen tree and shook his head to clear his thoughts. He couldn't afford to be distracted right now, not if there was a possibility that Naraku was here in America.

The problem was all of the bandits were human. Inuyasha briefly interrogated his prisoners last night, and after intimidating them a bit (they didn't _all_ have to be conscious for him to get the answers he needed) they were willing to talk. They called themselves the Spider Hand Gang and swore they had no idea what he was talking about when he demanded to know if their leader had any qualities that were non-human.

The hanyou sheriff had received bounties and warrant notices for many other gangs in the area, but he'd never heard of the Spider Hand before. According to them the gang moved in two groups, and had no main headquarters. They were devoted to simply robbing the innocent of their goods and nothing more. Inuyasha refused to believe it; the mark they bore was the exact same that he had seen on Naraku, there was no mistake.

He needed to figure out the two were connected, or at least why these bandits chose that mark to brand themselves with. In order for them to know it they'd have to have seen it, meaning Naraku was somewhere nearby. But why did he leave Japan? Was it on his own, or did Sesshomaru find him and kick him out too? Knowing Sesshomaru though, he'd probably just kill Naraku if he found him.

Then again, his brother's actions weren't quite as predictable as they once were. Inuyasha scowled, remembering the other reason why this year's trip had been awful. All he'd wanted to do was get the supplies and bring them back to Dogtooth; no one could've predicted that he'd find his brother's kid out in the desert, along with a cranky human mother.

For his entire life Inuyasha had been hated by Sesshomaru. The older youkai thought he was dirt; he hated the fact that their father mated with a human and saw it as his greatest shame. The incident with Tetsusaiga only made it worse, but Sesshomaru definitely hated him and his human blood from the very beginning. Humans meant nothing to him; he would kill them without thinking twice.

So what the hell happened?! Inuyasha had only been gone for fifty years, and suddenly Sesshomaru's got a half demon child running around and a human girl who says they're in love. Inuyasha had no interest in his brother's personal life, but if he spent so long hating humans and half-demons then what made him change his mind?

Of course, Kohana and Futeki were found alone in the desert. Even if Kohana claimed that she was the one that left, it didn't change the fact that Sesshomaru was still missing. If he really wanted to be with them then he would. It would take more than a fleeing human to get in the way of something Sesshomaru wanted.

So then why? Sesshomaru had allowed a human girl close to him without killing her, to the point where she deluded herself that they were in love. Was it just for kicks? To see what it was like, and then cast them aside? If so then that was a new low, even for Sesshomaru. It was bad enough that he messed with the girl's head, but to leave her alone to raise a half-demon? Inuyasha snarled at the thought.

Kohana was cranky and annoying, but Inuyasha couldn't deny that he felt sympathy for the pup. He knew what it was like to grow up in a world that saw him as neither one thing nor the other, a world that had no place for him. He remembered his mother doing her best to raise him by herself and the countless tears she would shed; not for her sake, but for his.

At least his father had the excuse of death for not being there. If this pup's father was still alive, then he was choosing not to help him. For his sake, Inuyasha had to admit that he was glad that Kagome took them in to live with that crack-pot that housed her and Sango. At least this town didn't seem to despise hanyou, even if it did have a weird old man who was obsessed with them.

By this time the sun had long since come up and light was speckling the ground below through the boughs of the pine trees. Still a few miles away, Inuyasha smelled smoke from the chimneys of the homes in Dogtooth. Eager to return he sped up and covered the distance in less than an hour.

The sheriff emerged through the tree line to find the town already awake and in motion. It was mid-morning but people littered the streets as they went about their day. Men from the wagon train were getting back into their usual habits; people were gardening in their yards, tending to their horses or moving about around town. Everyone here seemed to be happy, and a couple of people greeted the hanyou warmly as they passed him, he replying with a short nod.

This town may be small and remote, but the people here were innocent. Whatever might be out there, bandits, Naraku, demons, they didn't deserve that. Before Inuyasha came here he never really felt any sort of attachment to a place, but he was Dogtooth's sheriff. They elected him to be their guardian, and even though he first thought it was a stupid decision, he now felt a sense of responsibility for it. If anyone tried to attack this place, they'd have to get through him first.

"Inuyasha!" His ears twitched beneath his hat as a familiar voice called out his name. He looked down the street knowing that he would see Kagome approaching him. Behind her strolled Kohana, pup squirming in her arms.

"Where did you go?" The young miko asked when she got closer, "I was showing Kohana the town this morning, but you weren't at the sheriff's office when we went there. Nobody's seen you since last night."

"Checking the woods out," he responded, "Needed to make sure none of those bastards' friends followed us back here." He didn't feel the need to tell her anything about Naraku. The less she knew about it the better; that was too dangerous for Kagome to be involved. The look she gave told him that she knew he wasn't saying everything, and for a second he was afraid she was going to press the issue.

"All right then," she said at last, "I'm just glad you're ok." She smiled, and his heart bounced as that damned feeling came back. He scowled and prepared to leap away, but she went on.

"Mrs. Silburn and I made breakfast this morning," Kagome held up a basket she was carrying, "I brought some extra for you. I know it's almost lunchtime, but you haven't eaten anything all morning have you?"

The delicious scent that wafted into his nostrils halted him in his tracks. He turned his head and sniffed, only filling his nose with more of that wonderful smell. The frown melted away from his face and he lost all thoughts of fleeing. Kagome's smile brightened, and his pulse quickened.

Damn, this woman knew how to control him, even without 'sits'! But as Kagome opened the basket and the scent of food came pouring out he knew he was beat. She won this round.

* * *

By the end of her first week there, Kohana was beginning to memorize the layout of Dogtooth as well as the names of people who lived there. There were three main streets to the town, the middle on made up completely of stores. Kagome had explained them all to her, though the first two that she was quick to remember were Mr. Mullin's General Store and the Gun Store just a little down the road. There was also a doctor's office, a blacksmith, and a tailor along the street and at one end of the road stood a church while the other was Inuyasha's office.

The other two roads in town were made up of homes. Rosemary and Mr. Hawkes lived just down the street from the Silburns, and the young redhead liked to visit her Japanese friends as well as her other friends as often as possible. In fact, during the first week after the wagon train's return she gathered all of the church-ladies together to bake pies and an assortment of food to celebrate the changing of seasons. She invited Kagome and the rest to come help bake. That weekend Dogtooth had a real Welcome Home party for their wagon train just outside the blacksmith's barn.

Again, Kohana was bombarded with friendly welcoming faces that she wasn't quite sure how to deal with. Kagome stayed near her and tried to help explain names again as well as what sort of food or activities were happening. The young mother had never seen so much food in her life, though regrettably most of it was too sweet. The dancing also confused her; she didn't quite get the reason for the men and women to be separated into two lines and then face each other. She did discover that she did like the fiddle music being played for the dance, so she opted to stand by and watch.

Miroku was having no trouble finding dance partners, and was surrounded by a flock of women. Though several towered over him, the ex-monk was able to sweet-talk a variety of women with ease. Sango at first seemed annoyed by this, but Kohana later spotted her laughing and dancing with a bachelor or two and may or may not have been purposely ignoring Miroku. Either way, even though the two stood out in the crowd they were accepted by everyone with no question.

Kagome did take a few minutes to engage in the activities without trailing Kohana around. A few of the young men in town requested the miko as a dance partner, and she happily took on most of them for at least one song. The sheriff stayed off the dance-floor and struggled to keep the scowl from his face.

"I thought people were supposed to have fun at a party," the young mother commented, finding herself next to Inuyasha on the side-lines.

"Feh," the hanyou snorted, looking away, "I don't dance." His ears however, (visible without his hat) swiveled atop his head in the direction of Kagome. Her dance partner must've said something flirty as the hanyou suddenly twitched and growled lightly, contrasting against Kagome's bright laugh.

"…Right," Kohana said, rolling her eyes before finding another place to stand and watch. Jealous hanyou aside, everyone seemed to be having fun. Later, when Kagome took a break from dancing, she was able to help translate for a few people who wanted to politely greet and re-introduce themselves to the newest addition to their town and her child. By the end of the night Kohana was able to recognize at least a Judith, Hardie, Orvel, Cindy, and Amos.

The party didn't end until late into the night, though Kohana and several other women who were also mothers left early due to tired children. Even so, over the course of the next several days more and more people recognized her and called out greetings. These people, this town, had a sort of bond with one another. She remained skeptical, but they all still seemed to accept her presence without much question. Which made it all the more frustrating that all she could say back to them was either some 'hello's' or 'how's the weather'. She really needed to learn.

As promised, each day Dr. Silburn, with the help of Kagome as a translator, would sit down with her and teach her the letters of the English alphabet as well as words she could spell with them. By the end of the first week she could write a brief introduction of herself and Futeki, and red-faced she was pushed to share this with Rosemary who seemed delighted and applauded her efforts.

She never realized just how much she would enjoy learning to read and write. She understood _hiragana_, as it was the basic syllable spelling of Japanese, but her life prior to this had been dedicated to the fields and not studying. She couldn't read the more difficult _kanji_ system and had never really considered herself literate, nor had she bothered to care before. The English language was difficult, but their 'alphabet' was small, and could be used for everything!

Sometimes Miroku would stop by and visit them, often while delivering something to the Silburns from the store, and would sit in on the English lessons. The ex-monk actually proved to be very intelligent and insightful. When Kohana asked him who he learned to speak English from Miroku claimed to be self-taught.

"Not too many people speak our language outside of Japan," he explained, "I knew that if I wanted to experience the unique opportunities of other cultures I had to learn their language first."

"If by 'unique opportunities' you mean their women," Sango said. Miroku grinned micheviously.

"Ah, mais ma chère Sango, pense que des possibilités. Devrais je proclame pas ta beauté comme ça ?" As everyone stared in confusion, Miroku took Sango's hand and kissed it. Completely stunned, the young woman lost her composure as her face turned red. Miroku grinned until Sango sputtered and fled before he 'attempted to grope her'. When asked for a translation, or where exactly he learned to speak French, Miroku only smirked and gave a vague answer.

Kohana quickly learned that Miroku didn't always give direct answers, especially concerning his past, nor did he ever explain or mention the beads and glove. She originally assumed that he was a liar as well as a thief, but she soon saw that that wasn't all there was to him. Besides helping out Dr. and Mrs. Silburn and assisting English lessons, there were several times when she saw him carrying heavy boxes for other people or rescuing a little girl's cat from her roof. In reality Miroku was a very thoughtful and kind man, even if he was spotted at the saloon every other night "chasing women's skirts" as the others put it. It was confusing at first, but since Miroku didn't bother her after learning she already had a child, Kohana eventually accepted that he was not a threat.

The other one that continued to remain a mystery was Sango. The two of them settled their animosity after the attack on the wagon train, but that did not mean that they were close friends. If anything, Sango was more mysterious and vague whenever she talked about herself than Miroku. Every morning she and Kirara would wake up early and leave the house, often taking the giant Hiraikotsu with them, and would be back in time for breakfast.

She would always say that they were just 'practicing' but never what. Of course, after seeing the woman in battle Kohana assumed that she was out practicing fighting, but she still didn't understand how or why Sango was some type of warrior. Especially since most of the rest of the time Sango was helping around the house, and never too far from Kagome. She was very polite and refined and skilled in domestic chores. Unless they knew better nobody would ever expect her to be able to pose a serious threat. It was as if she hid her talents on purpose.

Then again, Kohana couldn't really blame the two for not being open about their lives when she gave little to no information about her own past to anyone. The only thing predictable about them was that Sango happened to be Miroku's favorite target for flirting. Even Inuyasha, though slightly more predictable than them, never said what he was thinking. This town was welcoming, but of the four people she could really talk to, three liked to hide their thoughts. Only Kagome seemed to be open about anything, and honestly the young mother preferred it that way. It kept things easy.

At first she was nervous, but luckily Dr. Silburn never seemed to ask her too many questions about herself either. He seemed far more interested in her son than he was in her, and only asked things about her if they related to Futeki.

"If you don't mind me asking," he said once, "Exactly how long did you carry your child before you gave birth?"

"Um…about nine months," she answered, and he quickly began scribbling in a notebook.

"I see, so roughly the same gestation period as human offspring. And you said he's two already? When did he begin walking?"

"Around eight months?"

"Hmm, and when did he begin to talk?"

"…A little over a year I think?"

"Yes yes, and tell me, how complex are his sentences and what sort of syntax and enunciation does he possess in comparison to the standard Japanese child?"

"…Uh…" Kohana stared blankly at the older man.

"Oh, forgive me;" Silburn laughed nervously, "I get a little carried away sometimes. I do apologize for all of the questions, but I want to know how fast he's developing in comparison to a human child. At two years humans should have already accomplished several mile-stones in their life, and since that's my starting data for Futeki I need to cover everything I missed prior to this."

"Actually he turns three in December."

"Really?" Silburn began to scribble more furiously in his notebook. He would at random moments sit down and begin to ask Kohana questions like this, or he would try to follow Futeki around and take notes on his behavior. The little hanyou at first was confused by the old man and tended to hide from him, but as the days passed he got used to Silburn's presence and even braved approaching him to sniff curiously. This delighted the old man and he took extensive notes on it.

Futeki was actually a very curious child. Even though he was never far from his mother, he was always finding something nearby to inspect or discover. The world around him was full of new scents and sensations, like the oven in the kitchen, or the plants in the garden, or Kirara. This was usually never a bad thing, except for the day that Futeki decided to 'discover' one of Silburn's nice chairs. Kohana apologized profusely; the cushions and legs hadn't stood a chance against the young hanyou's little fangs. Surprisingly, Dr. Silburn didn't seem to mind at all. In fact he kept all the torn up evidence in his office and made little measurements between the bite-marks, which admittedly was a little weird.

Futeki also liked to sit in on his mother's English lessons. While to most children it would be boring, the adults often heard the child mimicking the English he heard them speaking. He didn't really seem to understand what he was saying, but he grasped pronunciation easily and loved the looks other people gave him when he babbled English words at them. Though a little envious, his mother was proud at how fast he seemed to be picking it up.

Even so, while her child generally seemed pretty happy, Kohana worried about him. For his whole life he'd never stayed in a place with other people for more than a week or so, but this time they'd at least be staying in Dogtooth Peak for the entire winter. She worried that he might not know how to live with others for that long, but for the most part he seemed to be doing pretty fine.

Naturally, since Kagome was always helping out Kohana she was the other person who spent the most time with Futeki. The miko made it no secret that she thought the little hanyou was adorable, and sometimes when the little boy gifted his mother with a cricket he found he brought one for Kagome too. Sango too, a little to Kohana's surprise, found the child cute and would smile and talk back to him when he tried speaking to her. Miroku, the Silburns, Rosemary, really he seemed to get along great with all of them.

The only one that seemed odd was Inuyasha. For the most part the older hanyou didn't go out of his way to notice Futeki's presence, though he didn't ignore him either. Futeki, on the other hand, always knew when his uncle was nearby. If he caught the older one's scent, the little boy would sit up instantly and search until he found Inuyasha. Once he did he would watch him with wide eyes, but he would never outright approach him. His tail would lower, unless he received some sort of acknowledgement, and then it would slowly begin to wag. It was as if the child held his elder with some sort of reverence. Inuyasha never commented on it, but it did not escape Kohana's notice.

The young mother had so much on her mind recently that she started to forget some very important things. This was brought to her attention one morning when she woke and found that her son was not as lively as usual.

"Mama," the boy whimpered, looking uneasy, "Don't feel good…"

Kohana was out of bed in an instant placing her hand on his forehead. Her heart began to race when she felt heat.

"A fever," she mumbled, before her eyes widened and she realized that she lost track of the date. Glancing out the window she saw the moon on the edge of the morning sky, and nearly cursed herself for losing track of its phases.

"Little one," she spoke, trying to keep her voice calm, "It's that time again. You just need to rest today, ok? Mommy will take care of you." For once the child seemed to take her command without argument and let her tuck him back into bed, though he looked miserable.

Inwardly Kohana was panicking. Sure, she was letting Silburn observe her son for the sake of letting them stay in his house, but there were some secrets that she was not willing to share. She closed her eyes, willing herself to block out the terror of bad memories. She needed to focus for her son's sake.

Considering the predicament they were in for the winter this was going to be a hard secret to keep, but she had no choice. She had to draw the line. Kohana brought her act together when Kagome knocked on her door that morning for breakfast. Quickly she slid out the door and closed it before the miko could look in.

"Futeki's sick," she explained, deciding that a half-truth would be easier to hold up than a full lie, "I'm going to stay with him until he feels better."

"Oh no," Kagome said instantly looking worried, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No," Kohana responded, almost too quickly, "No, I think it'll be best if I take care of it. Don't trouble yourself on our account."

"It's fine," Kagome said, "I don't mind helping."

"No really," Kohana pushed, annoyed with Kagome's generous nature for once, "Just…let me do it. He doesn't need to be around people right now."

Kagome continued to insist, until Kohana after pushing her off slid back into her room and shut the door. The miko came by later with breakfast for them, and Kohana accepted it before shutting the door again. For the rest of the day the young mother rejected all visitors and kept the door closed, especially Dr. Silburn.

She knew she was being rude, and a sense of guilt welled up inside when she considered her behavior, but she couldn't compromise this. It wasn't about her. As the day went on Futeki's fever and condition grew worse, but she already knew it would. She stayed by his side through evening and into the night.

That's when the real struggle began.


End file.
